Prevalence of Occasional Hypertension and Its Association With Overweight and Obesity in Children Aged 5–6 Years in Tianjin

Abstract Background To investigate occasional hypertension in preschool children aged 5–6 years, and to analyze its association with overweight or obesity to provide the basis for early prevention. Methods Cluster random sampling was used to select 63 out of 1,802 kindergartens in 16 districts of Tianjin from 2016 to 2018. Blood pressure, height, and weight were measured among 21,393 children aged 5–6 years. A retrospective questionnaire survey was conducted to collect environmental factors. A multivariate logistic regression model was used to analyze the association between overweight or obesity and occasional hypertension, after adjustment for environmental factors. Results The prevalence of high blood pressure in preschool children of Tianjin was 11.9%, and the rate of occasional hypertension was 17.5%. The detection rate of abnormal blood pressure in overweight and obese children was significantly higher than that in normal weight children (P < 0.01). After adjusted for environmental factors, overweight and obesity were positively associated with high blood pressure and occasional hypertension. The odds ratio (95% confidence interval) of overweight for high blood pressure and occasional hypertension was 1.61 (1.41–1.83) and 1.79 (1.61–1.99), respectively; and odds ratio (95% confidence interval) of obesity for high blood pressure and occasional hypertension was 2.15 (1.85–2.50) and 3.16 (2.82–3.53), respectively. Conclusions Overweight and obesity increase the risk of occasional hypertension in preschoolers.