A reappraisal of the prevalence of pediatric hypertension through a nationwide database in Taiwan
Open Access
- 24 February 2021
- journal article
- research article
- Published by Springer Science and Business Media LLC in Scientific Reports
- Vol. 11 (1), 1-9
- https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-021-84001-6
Abstract
Hypertension in childhood and adolescence is associated with adult cardiovascular morbidity and mortality. However, the reported prevalence of pediatric hypertension varies considerably. We conducted a pioneer nationwide population-based study to investigate the prevalence of hypertension among children and adolescents. Pediatric patients who had been diagnosed with hypertension between 2000 and 2013 were selected from the National Health Insurance Research Database in Taiwan. Other metabolic syndrome-related diseases that would increase cardiovascular risk, including diabetes mellitus (DM), hyperlipidemia, and obesity, were also retrieved for further evaluation. In total, 10,364 children and adolescents diagnosed with hypertension were identified. The prevalence of pediatric hypertension in Taiwan ranged from 0.19 to 0.38 per 1000 children and adolescents between 2000 and 2013. Essential hypertension was most commonly coded (90.6%), which was much more than secondary hypertension (14.3%). Children and adolescents with hypertension were often associated with DM, hyperlipidemia, and obesity, with the odds ratios as 14.05 (95% confidence interval (CI) 11.74–16.81, p < 0.001), 10.65 (95% CI 9.48–11.97, p < 0.001), and 19.08 (95% CI 15.65–23.26, p < 0.001), respectively. To improve lifelong cardiovascular health, our results emphasize the importance of early proper recognition and suitable management of hypertension, as well as metabolic syndrome-related diseases, among children and adolescents.Keywords
Funding Information
- Taipei Medical University (Taipei, Taiwan) for New Faculty Research (TMU103-AE1-B22)
This publication has 54 references indexed in Scilit:
- Antihypertensive Drug Use By Children: Are the Drugs Labeled and Indicated?The Journal of Clinical Hypertension, 2012
- Exploring Determinants of Secular Decreases in Childhood Blood Pressure and HypertensionCirculation, 2011
- Cardiac and Vascular Consequences of Pre‐Hypertension in YouthThe Journal of Clinical Hypertension, 2011
- Influence of Age on Associations Between Childhood Risk Factors and Carotid Intima-Media Thickness in AdulthoodCirculation, 2010
- Prevalence and Correlates of Elevated Blood Pressure in Youth with Diabetes Mellitus: The Search for Diabetes in Youth StudyThe Journal of Pediatrics, 2010
- Blood pressure load, proteinuria and renal function in pre-hypertensive childrenPediatric Nephrology, 2009
- Blood Pressure in Children With Chronic Kidney DiseaseHypertension, 2008
- Usefulness of waist circumference for the identification of childhood hypertensionJournal of Hypertension, 2008
- Tracking of Blood Pressure From Childhood to AdulthoodCirculation, 2008
- Prevalence of Abnormal Lipid and Blood Pressure Values Among an Ethnically Diverse Population of Eighth-Grade Adolescents and Screening ImplicationsPEDIATRICS, 2006