Hypertension in kids on rise in India

A 15-year-old boy, who was obese and lived in a boarding school in Bengaluru, was taken to a hospital as he was suffering from a severe cold and cough.

- KAVITA BAJELI-DATT @ New Delhi

On routine checking, doctors found that his blood pressure (BP) readings were high for his age, and even his cholesterol was mildly elevated. He was not prescribed any medication to control his BP, but advised to monitor it twice weekly and also carry out lifestyle modifications like reducing weight, avoiding junk food and doing regular physical activity along with meditation and yoga. Six months later, after the boy lost significant weight, doctors were happy to see that his BP readings were regular.

According to Dr Yogesh Kumar Gupta, consultant paediatrician at Fortis Hospital, Bengaluru, who treated the child, the school student's BP returned to normal because it was detected early. "This case tells us the importance of early detection of hypertension and how lifestyle modifications can curb hypertension at an early age."

What worried the doctor was the hypertension, which once was primarily diagnosed in adults, as it is now being reported by health care professionals across the world and in India among children and adolescents.

The Bengaluru teenager's case is not an isolated one. In India, as well as globally, an increasing number of children are being detected with BP or hypertension. Described as paediatric hypertension, it has now become a growing global concern.