hafeezanwar
Junior Member
Paediatrician creates easier way to identify high BP in kids
Paediatricians now have a simpler way to diagnose a serious problem facing children, hypertension.
David Kaelber, paediatrician, Case Western Reserve University (CWRU) School of Medicine, and his team found that nearly 75 percent of hypertension and 90 percent of pre-hypertension cases in children and adolescents go undiagnosed.
They felt that one of the main reasons may be the complex chart currently used to help physicians identify high BP in children, said a CWRU release.
So Kaelber's team simplified the chart - focussing solely on a child's age and gender - eliminating the need for a height percentile and reducing the number of values in the blood pressure table from 476 to just 64.
The American Academy of Paediatrics and the American Heart Association recommends that blood pressure checks be done at all paediatric visits for health care (including dental and optometric appointments) for children aged between three and 18 years.
The current standard chart used by healthcare providers to evaluate paediatric BP is from the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute and includes hundreds of normal and abnormal blood pressure values.
The revised chart and accompanying description will be published in the June issue of Paediatrics.
--- IANS
Paediatricians now have a simpler way to diagnose a serious problem facing children, hypertension.
David Kaelber, paediatrician, Case Western Reserve University (CWRU) School of Medicine, and his team found that nearly 75 percent of hypertension and 90 percent of pre-hypertension cases in children and adolescents go undiagnosed.
They felt that one of the main reasons may be the complex chart currently used to help physicians identify high BP in children, said a CWRU release.
So Kaelber's team simplified the chart - focussing solely on a child's age and gender - eliminating the need for a height percentile and reducing the number of values in the blood pressure table from 476 to just 64.
The American Academy of Paediatrics and the American Heart Association recommends that blood pressure checks be done at all paediatric visits for health care (including dental and optometric appointments) for children aged between three and 18 years.
The current standard chart used by healthcare providers to evaluate paediatric BP is from the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute and includes hundreds of normal and abnormal blood pressure values.
The revised chart and accompanying description will be published in the June issue of Paediatrics.
--- IANS