Elevated blood pressure in children with cerebral palsy and its relationship with adiposity and physical activity.
Junsoo Lee, Trevor Batson, Kevin K McCully and 2 others
PMID 38853095WHAT IT FOUND
Children with cerebral palsy had higher diastolic blood pressure than matched typically developing peers.
This elevation was linked to visceral fat, not body mass index or physical activity levels. Standard BMI screening may miss this risk, suggesting blood pressure checks are vital for this group.
Key findings
01Children with CP had significantly higher diastolic blood pressure and heart rate compared to matched controls.
02In children with CP, elevated blood pressure was associated with higher visceral fat mass, but not with BMI or physical activity levels.
03A trend for higher hypertension prevalence was observed in children with CP (20%) compared to controls (3%).
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for PTsWhat it means for OTs
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What it does not show
The sample size was modest (30 per group), limiting the power to detect smaller associations or subgroup differences. Physical activity was measured as total volume; the study did not examine intensity thresholds, which may explain the lack of association with blood pressure in the CP group. Children were not matched for height, which is positively associated with blood pressure; however, the authors note this likely made the observed group differences in blood pressure smaller, not larger. The oscillometric device used may have slightly overestimated systolic blood pressure compared to auscultation norms, though the same device was used for both groups.
Declared interests
None reported.
The easy way to misread this
Do not assume that normal BMI indicates low cardiometabolic risk in children with cerebral palsy. The study found that visceral fat, which BMI does not distinguish, was the primary factor associated with elevated blood pressure in this group.