Hypertension is a silent killer. It can be a primary disease (essential hypertension) or due to some underlying disease process (secondary hypertension) which is more common in pediatric population.

1. 2 in every 10 school kids suffer from Hypertension:
Hypertension is a silent killer. It can be a primary disease (essential hypertension)
or due to some underlying disease process (secondary hypertension) which is more
common in pediatric population. Hypertension is defined as average Systolic BP and
or diastolic BP that is >/= 95th
percentile for gender, age and height on 3 or more
occasions.
White coat hypertension- A patient with BP levels above the 95th
percentile in a
physician’s office/clinic who is otherwise normotensive outside a clinic setting.
Age for BP checkup in Children
All children 3 years of age and older should have their BP measured at all health
care encounters and for children younger than 3 years with comorbid conditions.
Study:
Two of every 10 school children suffer from hypertension revealed a survey
conducted in Haryana, Goa, Gujarat and Manipur.
Study shows hypertension in children is mild in most cases and can be corrected
with lifestyle modification like regular exercise, reduced intake of salty food items
and weight correction in case of obese kids. However, without intervention, the
condition may worsen with age and cause diabetes, heart disease and stroke.
The survey was conducted among 14,957 students of primary and senior secondary
schools in the four states.

2. BP levels of 120/85, 135/90 and 135/90 mm of Hg was taken as cut off for 5,10
and 15 years of children. Dr. Anita Saxena, publisher of study said 23% children
had very high BP. High BP was most common among students in Manipur 29%,
followed by Haryana 26.5%, Gujarat 15% and Goa 10%. Variation in prevalence
among children screened in different geographical locations could be due to the
local diet, especially salt intake, as well as other environmental factors such as
temperature, humidity and exercise habit.
Dr. Saxena stressed on the need to screen students for high BP in schools to help
early intervention. Those on the higher end should be referred to specialists. School
health personnel should also educate children about the importance of healthy
lifestyle habits, which if imparted early are likely to continue till adulthood and help
prevent diseases like diabetes, heart disease and stroke, said the professor and
head of pediatric cardiology at AIIMS.
In 2013, another study published by AIIMS doctors had found that 3-4% of children
in Delhi schools suffered from hypertension, the most common cause of heart
related deaths. It is estimated that 16% of ischaemic heart disease, 21% of
peripheral vascular disease, 24% of acute myocardial infarctions and 29% of
strokes are attributable to hypertension, underlining the huge impact effective
prevention and control can have on reducing the rising burden of cardiovascular
disease, stated Dr. Umesh Kapil, the lead author of Delhi study. He said cutting
down on junk, high on salt and promoting physical activity can help ward off
hypertension in children.
For children, hypertension should be checked, as it can be a major cause of long
term ailments in children too. Simple changes in lifestyle help eradicating the early
hypertension in children too.