HYPERTENSION, A GLOBAL CONCERN
Hypertension (HTN) is now responsible for 7.1 million deaths per year worldwide, and largely contributes to cardiovascular and renal diseases such as ischemic heart disease, stroke and chronic kidney disease.
Cardiovascular and renal diseases linked to high blood pressure (BP) are the first cause of mortality in Europe with an economic impact cost of approximately 1 billion euros per year. In fact, although most of the adverse outcomes occur in adulthood it has become clear that high BP is a life course problem that can become evident in early life.
While few would dispute the importance of taking effective steps to identify and manage this condition in middle-aged and older people, relatively little attention has been paid to the problem of high BP in children and adolescents.
As a consequence, despite the latest advances and the wide literature on BP in children and adolescents, the solutions to relevant questions are still pending. Thus, scientific and clinical community, as well as decision-makers, stakeholders and the overall society, must face some critical problems related to the high BP in children and adolescents as a cardiovascular risk factor.
Read more: HyperChildNET, COST Action
Consensus Document – 2016 European Society of Hypertension guidelines for the management of high blood pressure in children and adolescents
HyperChildNET calculators – As a result of the work carried out in HyperChildNET, two Blood Pressure Calculators, namely a Paediatric office blood pressure calculator and a Paediatric 24-h ambulatory blood pressure calculator have been created. They are freely available for any clinical professional in Europe and beyond.
Calculator to assess blood pressure in children and young people
Calculator to assess 24-h ambulatory blood pressure in children and young people