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Epidemiology of Hypertension and Cardiovascular Disease in Children and Adolescents

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Pediatric Hypertension
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Abstract

Following decades of marked increases in the prevalence of hypertension in children and adolescents, in recent years prevalence rates have stabilized, if not declined. Furthermore, estimates of the prevalence of elevated blood pressure and hypertension in children and adolescents are impacted by the hypertension definitions applied, setting and approach to blood pressure measurement, and population evaluated. Overall, the prevalence of hypertension in children is estimated to be between 1% and 4%, with rates higher in adolescents as compared to younger children. Elevated blood pressure is more common, occurring in 10% to 20% of children and adolescents. Across studies, the most important risk factor for developing hypertension in childhood and adolescence is obesity. Hypertension presenting in adolescence tracks moderately well into adulthood and is a known risk for target organ damage, including left ventricular hypertrophy and subclinical atherosclerosis.

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Kharbanda, E.O. (2023). Epidemiology of Hypertension and Cardiovascular Disease in Children and Adolescents. In: Flynn, J.T., Ingelfinger, J.R., Brady, T.M. (eds) Pediatric Hypertension. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-06231-5_60

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