Prevalence of prehypertension and hypertension among adolescent high school girls in Tabriz, Iran.

Background: There are few studies of the prevalence of elevated blood pressure that include Iranian adolescent girls.

Objective: The aim of this cross-sectional study was to determine the blood pressure status and its relationship with body mass index (BMI) in adolescent girls attending high school in Tabriz, Iran.

Methods: A sample of 985 girls was selected by stepwise random sampling from five districts of Tabriz. Blood pressure, weight, and height of the subjects were measured and BMI was calculated. Blood pressure measurements were categorized as normal, prehypertension, or hypertension using the 2004 Fourth Report blood pressure screening recommendations. Overweight and obesity were defined according to International BMI Cut Off Points for adolescents.

Results: The prevalence rates of of prehypertension and hypertension were 13.9% and 19.4%, respectively. Obesity and overweight were seen in 2.8% and 16.4% of subjects, respectively. The prevalence rates of hypertension and prehypertension increased with increasing BMI.

Conclusions: Hypertension and prehypertension were highly prevalent in the studied adolescent girls. Obesity was associated with an increased risk of elevated blood pressure. Further studies are needed to identify other risk factors for high blood pressure in our studied population. Routine blood pressure measurements in adolescent girls of our community are suggested to prevent high blood pressure in adolescence and its complications in later life.