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[24-hour blood pressure measurement in normal children and adolescents]
Insights
This study monitored blood pressure in children and adolescents, finding that both boys and girls exhibited higher than average blood pressure readings compared to European norms. Overnight, blood pressure significantly decreased in both groups.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric Cardiology
- Cardiovascular Physiology
- Adolescent Health
Context:
- Ambulatory blood pressure monitoring (ABPM) is crucial for assessing cardiovascular health in pediatric populations.
- Establishing normative blood pressure data is essential for identifying hypertension in children and adolescents.
- Previous studies have highlighted variations in blood pressure patterns across different age groups and sexes.
Purpose:
- To continuously monitor 24-hour ambulatory blood pressure in healthy children and adolescents.
- To compare measured blood pressure values against established European blood pressure centiles.
- To analyze diurnal variations in blood pressure, including nocturnal dipping patterns.
Summary:
- Thirty-three healthy children and adolescents (ages 6-17) underwent 24-hour ambulatory blood pressure monitoring.
- On average, 67% of measurements were successfully completed.
- Systolic and diastolic blood pressure readings were generally above European centiles for both girls and boys, with boys showing higher deviations.
- Both systolic and diastolic blood pressure exhibited significant decreases during nighttime hours compared to daytime measurements in both sexes.
Impact:
- Provides valuable normative data for pediatric blood pressure in a specific population.
- Highlights potential trends of elevated blood pressure in children and adolescents.
- Demonstrates significant nocturnal blood pressure dipping, a key indicator of cardiovascular health.
Abstract:
Blood pressure was continuously monitored over 24 h in 33 healthy children and adolescents (18 girls, 15 boys, age 6-17 years) using a portable monitor. The results were compared with European blood pressure centiles for normal children and adolescents. On average, 67% (57-88%, median and quartiles) of the measurements were completed. The day's mean for systolic blood pressure for girls was 0.04 (-0.67-1.00) standard deviations above the mean of the reference group with corresponding body-height, and for diastolic blood pressure, 1.08 (0.50-1.63) standard deviations. The corresponding values for boys were 0.42 (0.09-0.45) for systolic and 1.11 (1.00-1.39) for diastolic blood pressure. Mean systolic blood pressure for girls decreased during the night by 10% (5-13%) compared to the day time measurements, and the diastolic blood pressure decreased overnight by 23% (12-28%). Systolic blood pressure for boys decreased overnight by 8% (6-11.5%), and diastolic blood pressure decreased by 15% (12-19%).