Prevalence of pre-hypertension and arterial hypertension and evaluation of associated factors in children and adolescents in public schools in Salvador, Bahia State, Brazil

This study aimed to assess pre-hypertension and hypertension-related factors in 1,125 seven- to-14-year-old subjects enrolled in the public school system in Salvador, Bahia State, Brazil. Exposure variables, namely body mass index, waist circumference, gender, age, physical activity, environmental and housing status, family income, diet, schooling, and maternal age were analyzed by polytomous logistic regression, and the outcome variable was categorized as normal, pre-hypertensive, and hypertensive. Prevalence of high blood pressure was 14.1%, including the prevalence of both hypertension (4.8%) and pre-hypertension (9.3%). An association was shown between pre-hypertension and overweight (OR: 3.13; 95%CI: 1.75-5.57). Hypertension was associated with overweight (OR: 3.02; 95%CI: 1.45-6.28), female gender (OR: 2.49; 95%CI: 1.24-4.98), and high-risk eating patterns (OR: 1.93; 95%CI: 1.04-3.56). In short, prevalence of pre-hypertension and hypertension in children and adolescents was higher among girls and individuals with overweight and inadequate diet.