Preschool children blood pressure percentiles by age and height

Area of Science:

• Pediatrics
• Cardiology
• Public Health

Background:

• Establishing accurate blood pressure (BP) references is crucial for identifying hypertension in children.
• Existing BP references may not accurately reflect diverse pediatric populations.

Purpose of the Study:

• To construct novel, gender- and height-specific blood pressure percentiles for Polish preschool children.
• To compare these new Polish BP references with existing US, German, and European standards.

Main Methods:

• A nationally representative sample of 4378 Polish children aged 3-6 years underwent oscillometric BP measurements using a validated device.
• Quantile and polynomial regression models were employed to construct BP percentiles simultaneously for age and height.
• Systolic blood pressure (SBP), diastolic blood pressure (DBP), and mean arterial blood pressure were analyzed.

Main Results:

• Gender-specific BP percentiles for Polish preschool children were successfully constructed.
• The 90th and 95th SBP and DBP percentiles for Polish children were generally lower than those reported in US, German, and IDEFICS European references.
• Differences in the 95th SBP percentiles ranged from -5 to 0 mm Hg (boys) and -2 to -1 mm Hg (girls) compared to German and US references.

Conclusions:

• Polish preschool children exhibit lower BP percentiles compared to current US, German, and European references.
• The study underscores the importance of utilizing appropriate, region-specific reference values for accurate BP interpretation in pediatric populations.
• These findings may inform the development of tailored pediatric hypertension screening guidelines in Poland.