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Assessment of Child Anthropometry in a Large Epidemiologic Study
Published on: February 2, 2017
Low birth weight and blood pressure at age 7-11 years in a biracial sample
G A Donker1, D R Labarthe, R B Harrist
1Epidemiology Research Center, School of Public Health, University of Texas Houston Health Science Center, USA.
Insights
Low birth weight may increase high blood pressure risk in Black boys aged 7-11. However, this link between birth weight and blood pressure was not consistently found across all race and sex groups in this study.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric Health
- Cardiovascular Epidemiology
- Public Health
Background:
- Birth weight is a potential early life determinant of later health outcomes.
- Childhood blood pressure is a critical indicator of cardiovascular health.
- Understanding factors influencing childhood blood pressure is vital for preventative strategies.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the hypothesis that lower birth weight predicts higher blood pressure in children aged 7-11 years.
- To examine potential race- and sex-specific associations between birth weight and blood pressure.
- To compare the predictive power of birth weight versus body mass index on childhood blood pressure.
Main Methods:
- Analysis of merged data from the Bogalusa Heart Study, including a newborn cohort and children aged 7-11.
- Prevalence ratios were calculated for upper deciles of diastolic and systolic blood pressure based on birth weight categories (<2,500g vs. >=2,500g).
- Multiple linear regression analyses were used to assess the association of birth weight and Quetelet index (body mass index) with blood pressure.
Main Results:
- A significantly higher prevalence ratio for high diastolic blood pressure was observed in Black boys with low birth weight (Prevalence Ratio = 2.66, p < 0.05).
- No significant associations were found for white boys, white girls, or Black girls regarding diastolic blood pressure.
- Systolic blood pressure showed no significant associations across any race-sex group. The Quetelet index was a stronger correlate of blood pressure than birth weight.
Conclusions:
- Low birth weight may be a risk factor for subsequent high blood pressure specifically in Black boys aged 7-11 years.
- The inconsistent findings across different race-sex groups suggest complex multifactorial influences on blood pressure development.
- Further research is needed to explain the unexplained variations and confirm the role of birth weight in childhood hypertension.
Abstract:
The hypothesis that birth weight predicts blood pressure inversely at age 7 through 11 years was examined in 1,446 white children and black children in Washington Parish, Louisiana. Two data sets of the Bogalusa Heart Study were merged: 1) newborn cohort participants (n = 233), initially examined at birth, 1973-1974, and reexamined in 1984-1985 at ages 9 through 11 years; and 2) subjects examined at ages 7 through 11 years in 1987-1988 (n = 1,213) whose birth weight was collected from birth certificates in 1991. The prevalence ratios for being in the race-, sex-, and age-specific upper decile of diastolic blood pressure in children born with low birth weight (< 2,500 g) versus those with birth weight > or = 2,500 g were 0.85 (95% confidence interval 0.28-2.56) for white boys, 2.66 (95% confidence interval 1.24-5.70, p < 0.05) for black boys, 1.38 (95% confidence interval 0.63-3.03) for white girls, and 1.05 (95% confidence interval 0.40-2.75) for black girls. For systolic blood pressure, the corresponding prevalence ratio for each race-sex group did not differ from one. When the analyses were restricted to full-term births, prevalence ratios in any race-sex group did not differ from one for systolic and diastolic blood pressure. In multiple linear regression analyses, the concurrently determined Quetelet index (p < 0.001) was a much stronger correlate of systolic and diastolic blood pressure after appropriate adjustment than was birth weight (p > 0.05). From this study, there is some evidence that low birth weight may determine a risk for subsequent high blood pressure in black boys in the age group 7 through 11 years, but the inconsistency of the results for other race-sex groups was unexpected and remains unexplained, if the underlying hypothesis is true.
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