High blood pressure may affect the brains of children

connie dello buono

10 years ago

High blood pressure may affect the brains of some children and teens, a new study suggests.

Researchers assessed the cognitive (thinking) abilities of 150 youngsters. The kids were between the ages of 10 and 18 years. Half of the kids were newly diagnosed with high blood pressure, while the other half had normal blood pressure.

The researchers compared the groups and found that children with high blood pressure scored lower on tests of visual and verbal memory, processing speed and verbal skills than those without high blood pressure.

But while the children with high blood pressure (hypertension) had lower scores on the tests, the differences were small. And the investigators emphasized that all of the children’s scores fell within normal ranges. No children were found to be obviously impaired in thinking or memory, the researchers said.

The study also found that more children with sleep issues had high blood pressure, suggesting that poor sleep may have had an effect on thinking tests.

And the study only found an association between high blood pressure and thinking abilities in children.

The findings appear Sept. 29 in The Journal of Pediatrics.