Analysis of different anthropometric indicators in the detection of high blood pressure in school adolescents: a cross-sectional study with 8295 adolescents.
Diego G D Christofaro, Breno Q Farah, Luiz Carlos M Vanderlei and 4 others
PMID 29169996WHAT IT FOUND
Body measurements like BMI and waist circumference are linked to high blood pressure in adolescents but are poor screening tools.
They miss most cases, generating many false alarms. Use them only to flag students for proper blood pressure testing, not to diagnose.
Key findings
01Adolescents classified as overweight by BMI, waist circumference, or waist-to-height ratio had significantly higher odds of having high blood pressure compared to those with normal measurements.
02All three anthropometric indicators showed low sensitivity, meaning they failed to detect the majority of adolescents who actually had high blood pressure.
03The indicators had good specificity, meaning they were accurate at identifying those without the condition, but this came with a high rate of false positives.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for PTs
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What it does not show
Blood pressure was measured on a single occasion, which may have overestimated the prevalence of high blood pressure due to white-coat effects or normal variability. The cross-sectional design cannot prove that adiposity causes high blood pressure, only that they are associated. Ethnicity and sexual maturation were not assessed, both of which can influence blood pressure and body composition in adolescents.
Declared interests
The authors declare no conflicts of interest.
The easy way to misread this
Do not assume a student with a high BMI or waist circumference has high blood pressure. These measures have low sensitivity and high false-positive rates, so they are useful only for flagging students who need actual blood pressure testing, not for diagnosis.