Average Blood Pressure levels in US teens on rise

AORN Journal,  July, 2004  

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Blood pressure levels of children and teenagers have risen significantly since 1988, according to a May 4, 2004, news release from the National Institutes of Health. The study, "Trends in Blood Pressure Among Children and Adolescents," which is supported by the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI), attributes the rise in part to an increase in the prevalence of overweight and obesity.

This summer, the NHLBI will release updated clinical practice guidelines on high blood pressure in children and adolescents. The guidelines include revised blood pressure tables and updated recommendations for lifestyle and medication therapies for high blood pressure, which is a major risk factor for heart disease and the main risk factor for stroke.

The study was conducted by researchers at Tulane University in New Orleans and the NHLBI. It appears in the May 5, 2004, issue of JAMA.

Average Blood Pressure Levels on Rise Among American Children/Teenagers (news release, Bethesda, Md: National Institutes of Health, May 4, 2004) http://www .nih.gov/news/pr/may2004/nhlbi-04.htm (accessed 18 May 2004).

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