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Normal oscillometric blood pressure values in Chinese children during their first six years
Insights
This study establishes normal blood pressure ranges for healthy children aged 1 day to 6 years. Blood pressure, particularly systolic, increases rapidly in infancy and gradually with age and weight, with no significant sex-based differences.
Area of Science:
- Pediatrics
- Cardiovascular Physiology
- Biometrics
Background:
- Establishing normative data for blood pressure in children is crucial for early detection of cardiovascular issues.
- Previous studies may lack comprehensive data across a wide pediatric age range.
Purpose of the Study:
- To define normal upper arm blood pressure values in healthy children from 1 day to 6 years.
- To analyze the relationship between blood pressure, age, body weight, and body length.
Main Methods:
- Measured blood pressure, heart rate, body weight, length, and skinfold thickness in 3937 healthy children.
- Utilized an oscillometric device with appropriate cuff size for accurate readings.
- Obtained triple measurements in standardized positions (supine for infants, sitting for older children).
Main Results:
- Blood pressure (systolic/diastolic/mean) significantly increased from birth through the first two months and continued to rise gradually with age.
- Blood pressure showed a rapid increase with initial weight gain (under 5 kg to 5-10 kg) and then a gradual increase with body weight.
- No significant sex-based differences were observed in blood pressure or heart rate across different ages, lengths, or weights.
Conclusions:
- This study provides essential reference values for normal blood pressure in a large cohort of young children.
- Age and body weight are key determinants of blood pressure in early childhood.
- The findings support the use of age and weight-adjusted blood pressure norms for pediatric health monitoring.
Abstract:
To establish normal blood pressure values, values of the upper arm blood pressure, heart rate, body weight, body length and thickness of skin fold over the deltoid area were measured in 3937 healthy children aged 1 day to 6 years. The cuff to measure the blood pressure was selected to cover a two-thirds length of the upper arm. Triple measurements of blood pressure and heart rate were obtained from infants younger than one year of age by an oscillometric device at supine position and in a quiet situation and at a sitting position from children older than one year. The average of blood pressure values (systolic/diastolic/mean) increased rapidly from 62.1/39.7/47.2 mmHg at age day one up to 72.7/46.9/56.6 mmHg at one week of life and up to 85.0/47.4/56.0 mmHg at age two months. After that, the blood pressure value (systolic/diastolic/mean) increased gradually with age. Blood pressure values (systolic/diastolic/mean) increased rapidly from 68.0/43.7/53.1 mmHg in children weighing less than 5 kg up to 87.6/41.8/59.8 mmHg in those weighing 5 to 10 kg; then values increased gradually with body weight. There were no significant differences in blood pressure and heart rate between boys and girls with different ages, different body lengths or different body weights.