Why the study?
Does familial hypertension increase blood pressure and the prevalence of elevated blood pressure in adolescents?
Does familial hypertension increase blood pressure and the prevalence of elevated blood pressure in adolescents?
Adolescents, particularly males, with a family history of hypertension and above-average weight are at increased risk for elevated blood pressure and should be closely monitored.
Supports sex-specific BP monitoring in male adolescents with familial hypertension; leaves open causal confirmation and outcome impact in prospective studies.
The relationships of familial hypertension and height, weight, and blood pressure (BP) were studied in two adolescent populations. Subjects having hypertensive first-degree relatives were matched to control subjects without such a family history. The group with familial hypertension demonstrated a slightly higher average BP but also had a greater mean body weight and ponderal index than the control group. After controlling for weight, male but not female subjects with a family history of hypertension had a greater prevalence of elevated BP and higher average pressures than controls. The factors of above-average weight and familial hypertension appear to interact so as to produce an excessive prevalence of elevated BP. These trends suggest that teenagers with hypertensive first-degree relatives constitute a special risk group that should be closely monitored.
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F. Russell Kellogg (1981) studied this question.
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