Purpose: To translate long form, interview-administered International Physical Activity Questionnaire (IPAQ) from English to Persian and evaluate its validity, reliability and reproducibility.Methods: A forward-backward translation procedure was followed to develop the Persian version of the IPAQ. A total of 218 respondents (53.7% women, aged 22-76 yr) completed the Persian version in Tehran, Iran. To examine the test-retest reliability, 48 healthy volunteers completed the IPAQ twice during a 7-day period. . The PA indicators derived from the IPAQ were assessed for reliability and were compared with aerobic fitness and body mass index (BMI) for construct validity. Results:In general, the questionnaire was received well and all domains met the minimum reliability standards (intra-class correlation [ICC]> 0.7), except for Leisure-time physical activity (PA). Aerobic fitness showed a weak positive correlation with all of the PA results derived from the IPAQ. A significant correlation was observed between the IPAQ data for total PA and both aerobic fitness (r=0.33, P<0.001) and BMI (r=0.26, P<0.001). Performing a known group comparison analysis, the results indicated that the questionnaire was discriminated well between the subgroups of the study samples expected to be different in their physical activity. Conclusions:The Persian version of the long form, interviewadministered IPAQ had an acceptable reliability and validity for assessing total PA in our Iranian sample of individuals. It may be a useful instrument for generating internationally comparable data on PA.

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There is a traditional belief among Eastern people that opium may have ameliorating effects on cardiovascular risk factors, especially diabetes; thus, it is widely used among diabetic patients. We attempted to investigate the association of opium consumption with coronary artery disease (CAD) in diabetic patients. A cross-sectional study was conducted on diabetic patients undergoing coronary angiography in our center. Out of 1925 diabetic patients included in the study, 228 were opium users, and the remaining 1697 non-opium users were used as a pool of potential comparators. Propensity scores were used to match the 228 opium consumers with 228 matched comparators for age, sex, and smoking status. The Gensini score and extent score were respectively used to assess the angiographic severity and extent of CAD. The mean Gensini score (86.9 ± 62.7 vs. 59.6 ± 43.4, p < 0.0001) and extent score (7.1 ± 2.9 vs. 5.9 ± 2.9, p < 0.0001) were significantly higher in opium user diabetic patients than in non-opium users. After adjustment for potential confounders, a dose-response relationship was observed between dose of opium and the Gensini score ( β = 0.27, p = 0.04). There were no significant differences between the routes of opium administration (inhalation vs. oral) regarding the severity and extent of CAD. In conclusion, exposure to opium in diabetic patients may be positively associated with the risk of CAD, and with the angiographically determined severity and extent of the disease. Furthermore, dosage of opium consumption may correlate with severity of CAD.

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Purpose: To investigate the effects of a 10-week water aerobic exercise on the resting blood pressure in patients with stage 1 or 2 hypertension referring to Tehran University Clinics. Methods Conclusion:A 10-week course of water aerobic exercise markedly reduced the systolic and mean arterial blood pressure of patients with essential hypertension and is especially recommended for the obese and the elderly who have orthopedic problems or bronchospasm.

Opioids have the highest rate of illicit drug consumption after cannabis worldwide. Opium, after tobacco, is still the most commonly abused substance in the Middle East. In addition to the ease of availability, one reason for the high consumption of opium in Asian countries might be a traditional belief among Eastern people and even medical staff that opium may have ameliorating effects on cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) as well as diabetes mellitus, hypertension, and dyslipidemia. Over the last decade, many studies have been performed on humans and animals to evaluate the interplay between opium consumption and stable coronary artery disease, acute coronary syndromes, and atherosclerosis. In this review, we conclude that opium consumption should be considered a risk factor for CVDs. Healthy individuals, as well as cardiac and diabetic patients, should be informed and educated about the hazardous effects of opium consumption on cardiovascular and other chronic diseases.

The association between coronary arterial dominance patterns and the coronary artery diameter, length, and valvular heart diseases were previously studied. However, its association with coronary artery disease (CAD) is unclear. We investigated to determine whether the extent and localization of CAD differ in right, left, or codominant coronary arterial patterns. Twelve thousand five hundred fifty-eight patients admitted to Tehran Heart Center for coronary angiography were studied retrospectively (2004-2006). The extent and localization of CAD and the dominant artery were determined. There were 62.7% males. The mean age was 57.6 +/- 10.3. 84.2% [95% confidence interval (CI); 83.6-84.8%], 10.9% (95% CI; 10.4-11.4%), and 4.8% (95% CI; 4.4-5.2%) of the patients were right, left, and codominant, respectively; No significant difference considering age, sex, positive family history, hypertension, hyperlipidemia, electrocardiography, exercise treadmill stress test, and perfusion scan were seen in the groups. The right-dominant patients tend to have three-vessel disease (33.1% vs. 27%, P < 0.0001), stenosis of more than 50% in right coronary artery (65.9% vs. 57.9%, P < 0.0001) and left circumflex territories (64% vs. 59.4%, P = 0.01), more than the left-dominant patients. The involvements of the left main coronary artery, left anterior descending artery territory, and posterior descending artery were not significantly different. This study demonstrates a relationship between angiographic CAD severity, and the involved arterial territory and dominancy patterns.