Description
Overall definition of hypertension implies “a rise in blood pressure of unknown cause that increases risk for cerebral, cardiac, and renal events” (Messerli, Williams, & Ritz, 2007, p. 591). Hypertension is not a frequent health concern among children and adolescents but the number of diagnoses increases. Both in adults and children, blood pressure values are interrelated with body mass, height, and gender of a patient (Spagnolo et al., 2013). The periods of fast blood pressure values increase include the first weeks of a child’s life and puberty. “Hypertension has a greater likelihood of developing and requiring drug therapy in certain patients, including those with renal or cardiac disease, diabetes mellitus, parents with hypertension, or obesity” (Flynn & Daniels, 2006, p. 746). The non-pharmacologic approach to the problem includes “dietary changes, increased physical activity and weight loss in the obese” (Lande & Flynn, 2009, p. 1939). The prescription of the pharmacologic hypertension treatment is highly dependent on health conditions of a patient.
Significance of Research in Hypertension Treatment
Hypertension in children provokes the risk factors for the development of the cardiovascular diseases. The hypertensive cardiovascular disease causes “subtle target-organ damage such as left-ventricular hypertrophy, microalbuminuria, and cognitive dysfunction” (Messerli, Williams, & Ritz, 2007, p. 591). The elaboration of the right treatment methods includes blood pressure measuring procedures, monitoring of organ damage (heart and vessels, kidney, retina, nervous system, etc.), the differential diagnosis, “the dietary and behavioral interventions,” and the drug therapy in treatment of the secondary forms of hypertension (Spagnolo et al., 2013, p. 8). The appropriate and timely prescribed treatment of hypertension in children and adolescents supports the prevention of the negative impacts of high blood pressure on health and its development into severe forms of cardiovascular diseases.
Goal of the Project
The assessment and evaluation of the pharmacological and non-pharmacological procedures aimed at the reduction of the excessive blood pressure in pediatric population for the determination of the most appropriate treatment of the primary and secondary forms of hypertension.
Implementation and Methods
For answering the questions that are grounded in the goals of the project research, the methods of literature analysis and focus group studying were implemented. The methods involved the investigation of the relations between factors provoking hypertension diseases among children and adolescents and the analyses of data retrieved from the previous studies of the prominent physicians and medical researchers in the field of pediatrics. The main quantitative research method applied in the analyzed works is PICO (Patient, Intervention, Comparison, and Outcome).
Location and Target Audience
The targeted audience includes the hypertensive children and adolescents. The average age of the sample is 12, and it is inclusive of both genders. The pediatric subjects who constitute the sample of the research both with the “cardiovascular risk factors” (obesity, diabetes, renal disease, etc.) and without such factors. The data about the participants is retrieved from the US and European organization’s databases and documentations, such as the European Society of Hypertension and the Fourth Report on the Diagnosis Evaluation and Treatment of High Blood Pressure in Children (Spagnolo et al., 2013; Flynn & Daniels, 2006).
Barriers and Limitations
The main limitation of the current research and data evaluation is the lack of opportunity to evaluate the long-term result of the anti-hypertension medical procedures. The data collected for the evaluation is comprised of information that belongs to the limited periods of time. For the more in-depth answers, the long-term observation is required. The contribution made by physicians and scientists to the understanding of the children’s hypertension is comprehensive, and the findings are sufficient. Therefore, the method of the literature analysis is efficient in the research of the issue. However, the further investigation and the studied group observation is necessary for the determination of the most effective methods of the disease’s treatment.
Outcomes and Findings
In the result of the analysis, it was established that the main reason for the exceeded blood pressure values among children without health conditions is obesity. “A family history of hypertension” is also a factor that increases the risk of raise in blood pressure (Spagnolo et al., 2013). The prevention of the hypertension development depends on the efficiency and timeliness of the diagnosis. The repeated monitoring of a patient’s blood pressure supports the precise identification of the problem and helps to define the appropriate treatment measures. In case hypertension is diagnosed, the pediatrician needs to conduct evaluations for etiology and organ damage. The procedures are prescribed after all the evaluations are made.
For the primary forms of hypertension the behavioral and dietary changes are often sufficient. The combination with the increase in the physical activities helps to reduce overweight, and the “reduction of dietary sodium intake” contributes to the improvement of the patient’s condition (Spagnolo et al., 2013). The treatment of the secondary forms of hypertension includes the pharmacological anti-hypertensive agents such as Metoprolol, Carvedilol, Clonidine, and others. The prescription of the medical treatment must be based on the evaluation of the negative impacts on health and the degree of damage to a patient’s organs (Flynn & Daniels, 2006).
The efficiency of treatment of the severe form s of disease relies on the long-term monitoring of patients. All the medical procedures should comply with legislation and safety regulations.
Reference List
Flynn, J., & Daniels, S. (2006). Pharmacologic treatment of hypertension in children and adolescents. The Jornal of Pediatrics, 149(6), 746-754.
Lande, M., & Flynn, J. (2009). Treatment of hypertension in children and adolescents. Pediatric Nephrology, 24(10), 1939-1949.
Messerli, F., Williams, B., & Ritz, E. (2007). Essential hypertension. The Lancet, 370(9587), 591-603.
Spagnolo, A., Giussani, M., Ambruzzi, A., Bianchetti, M., Maringhini, S., Matteucci, M.,…Genovesi, S. (2013). Focus on prevention, diagnosis and treatment of hypertension in children and adolescents. Italian Journal of Pediatrics, 39(1), 1-20.