F. Bruder Stapleton, MD reviewing Lande MB et al. J Pediatr 2016 Sep 29.

Children with primary hypertension had reduced performance on tests of memory, attention, and executive function compared with matched normotensive children.

Studies of the long-term consequences of childhood hypertension have often focused on cardiovascular health risks; however, recent studies suggest that hypertension may be associated with reduced cognitive function in adults. In this prospective multicenter, controlled trial, researchers compared neurocognitive function in 75 children aged 10 to 18 years with newly diagnosed, untreated primary hypertension and 75 normotensive controls matched for maternal education and body mass index. Race, ethnicity, and socioeconomic status were similar in the two groups.

The hypertensive cohort had blood pressure (BP) ≥95th percentile and sustained hypertension on ambulatory BP measurement. In multivariate analysis, hypertension was independently associated with reduced performance on tests for verbal and visual learning and recall as well as with verbal and visual reasoning. Hypertension was not associated with performance on tasks of vigilance and visuomotor reaction time, auditory and visual attention, working memory, and some problem solving. Children with hypertension scored significantly worse on parents' ratings of executive function in everyday settings and ratings of disordered sleep. Children with severe hypertension (68% of the cohort) scored worse on tests of learning and memory than those with moderate hypertension; however, scores on tests of general intelligence did not differ with severity of hypertension.

CITATION(S):

Lande MB et al. Neurocognitive function in children with primary hypertension. J Pediatr 2016 Sep 29; [e-pub].

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