Derivation of Simplified Blood Pressure Percentile Chart for Children Aged 1-13 Years in Southern India: A Cross-sectional Study

Introduction: Systemic arterial hypertension is an important cause of adverse cardiovascular events with high morbidity and mortality in adults. Blood Pressure (BP) percentile chart from outside India varies significantly in comparison with Indian charts. Percentile distribution charts have already been developed for adults in various studies but its use is limited in paediatric age group.

Aim: To measure blood pressure values of children aged between 1-13 years and derive percentile charts for each age group.

Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted at SRM Medical College and Research Centre in Kattankalathur, Tamil Nadu, India. Duration of the study was six months from July to December 2021. After Registration of an Institutional Review Board (IRB) approval, 1230 children were recruited and BP was measured using oscillometric method. Blood pressure values were represented as mean with standard deviations. Univariate analyses between blood pressure, age, height, and weight were done with Pearson’s correlation method, and gender differences were tested with Student’s t-test.

Results: Study group included 1,230 children with a mean (SD) age of 6.1 (3.4) years. Simplified percentile charts were created using age and gender. Height and weight was not used as it was seen to explain very little variability of BP. 95th percentile values suggested levels indicating hypertension to be 110/71.5, 125/79, 131/83.5 at ages of 1,5 and 10 years, respectively for female while the same for male was 105/70, 124/79, 129/82.

Conclusion: Simplified reference tables and charts, and simple convenient thresholds may be useful for rapid screening of hypertension using oscillometric method.