Hypertension in Teens Tied to Heart Damage

The following is excerpted from an online article posted by HealthDay.

Hypertension may precede premature cardiac damage in young adults, according to a study published online in The Journal of Pediatrics.

Andrew O. Agbaje, M.D., from University of Eastern Finland in Kuopio, used data from 1,856 17-year-olds participating in the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children, U.K. birth cohort, who were followed-up for seven years to examine the longitudinal course for the development of hypertension and cardiac damage in adolescents.

Analysis showed that the prevalence of elevated systolic blood pressure (BP) increased from 6.4 to 12.2 percent, left ventricular (LV) hypertrophy from 3.6 to 7.2 percent, and LV diastolic dysfunction from 11.1 to 16.3 percent. There was an association noted between cumulative elevated systolic BP and worsening LV hypertrophy in females (odds ratio, 1.61). In both males and females, elevated systolic BP was associated with worsening LV diastolic dysfunction. There was an association seen between elevated diastolic BP and worsening LV hypertrophy in both males and females.

Source: HealthDay
https://consumer.healthday.com/physician-s-briefing-hypertension-2659656042.html