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Blood pressure in Canadian children and adolescents
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by Gilles Paradis, Mark S. Tremblay, Ian Janssen, Arnaud Chiolero and Tracey Bushnik
Abstract
Keywords
Findings
Authors
What is already known on this subject?
What does this study add?
Abstract
Background
Because blood pressure (BP) tracks from childhood to adulthood, assessing levels in youth is relevant. There are no recent BP data for Canadian children and adolescents, and past studies have used a variety of design and measurement devices.
Data and methods
With a clinically validated oscillometric device, resting BP was measured in 2,079 respondents aged 6 to 19 years from the Canadian Health Measures Survey. The average of the last five of six BP measures taken one minute apart at a single visit was used in this report. Borderline or elevated BP was defined as greater than or equal to the 90th percentile of US reference values for participants aged 6 to 17 years. Borderline or elevated BP for 18- to 19-year-olds was defined as equal to or greater than 120 systolic BP or equal to or greater than 80 diastolic BP. Participants of any age who reported taking antihypertensive medication in the past month were also defined as having elevated BP.
Results
At ages 6 to 11 years, mean (standard error) systolic/diastolic blood pressure was 93(0)/61(1) in boys and 93(0)/60(0) mmHg in girls, and at ages 12 to 19 years, 101(1)/63(1) and 98(1)/63(1) mmHg, respectively. An estimated 2.1% (95% confidence interval 1.3% to 3.0%) of Canadian children and youth had borderline levels; 0.8% (0.4% to 1.4%) had elevated BP.
Interpretation
Despite the prevalence of obesity among young people, BP levels were lower than reported in provincial samples, which may, in part, reflect differences in methodologies and measurement instruments.
Keywords
diastolic pressure, hypertension, obesity, overweight, survey, systolic pressure
Findings
No nationally representative blood pressure (BP) data for Canadian children and adolescents have been collected since the 1978 Canada Health Survey. With the results of the 2007-2009 Canadian Health Measures Survey (CHMS), launched by Statistics Canada in partnership with Health Canada and the Public Health Agency of Canada, it is possible to address this data gap. The CHMS is the most comprehensive direct health measures survey ever conducted in Canada. In addition to a detailed health interview, the survey involves direct measurement of indicators and of risk factors for chronic diseases, infectious diseases, environmental exposures, nutritional status, physical activity and physical fi tness..[Full text]
Authors
Gilles Paradis (1-514-398-1418; gilles.paradis@mcgill.ca) is with the Department of Epidemiology, Biostatistics and Occupational Health, McGill University, Health Centre Research Institute and the Institut national de santé publique du Québec; Mark S. Tremblay is with the Children’s Hospital of Eastern Ontario Research Institute; Ian Janssen is with Queen’s University; Arnaud Chiolero is with McGill University; and Tracey Bushnik is with Statistics Canada.
What is already known on this subject?
- Elevated blood pressure (BP) is an important cause of disability and death worldwide.
- Elevated BP at young ages is a risk factor for the development of hypertension in adulthood.
- The strength of BP tracking increases with body mass index.
- No nationally representative BP data for Canadian children and adolescents have been collected since the 1978 Canada Health Survey.
What does this study add?
- Based on data from the 2007-2009 Canadian Health Measures Survey, an estimated 0.8% of Canadians aged 6 to 19 had elevated BP, and 2.1% had borderline levels.
- The differences in mean systolic BP between BMI categories reached statistical significance among boys aged 12 to 19 years, girls aged 6 to 11 years, and in both age groups when the genders were combined.
- Differences in mean diastolic BP by BMI category reached statistical significance only among obese boys aged 12 to 19 years.
