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Premature birth may confer risk for high BP in adulthood

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In young adulthood, those born extremely preterm have higher BP and smaller kidneys compared with those born full term, according to data presented at the American Heart Association’s Council on Hypertension Scientific Sessions.

“Adults born preterm may not present with the ‘classical’ risk factors for heart disease, but they are at increased risk of hypertension and insulin resistance and certainly require regular medical follow-up,” Anne Monique Nuyt, MD, head of the division of neonatology at the Sainte-Justine University Hospital and Research Center of the University of Montreal, said in a press release.

Anne Monique Nuyt

The researchers studied 40 individuals (mean age, 24 years) born extremely preterm ( 29 weeks), who were matched by age, sex, race and socioeconomic status with 40 people born full term (mean age, 23 years), obtaining anthropometric measurements, serum and urine chemistry, renal ultrasound and 24-hour ambulatory BP.

Nuyt and colleagues examined the association between birth status, BP and renal size and function.

Compared with those born full term, those born extremely preterm had higher 24-hour ambulatory systolic BP (120 mm Hg vs. 115 mm Hg; P = .005), higher 24-hour diastolic BP (68 mm Hg vs. 65 mm Hg; P = .033), a higher median percentage of time while awake with systolic BP greater than 130 mm Hg (15% vs. 6%; P = .004), a higher median percentage of time while awake with systolic BP greater than 135 mm Hg (14% vs. 6%; P = .001), a higher mean systolic BP while asleep (111 mm Hg vs. 107 mm Hg; P = .008) and a smaller mean kidney size (157 cm³/m² vs. 181 cm³/m²; P = .002), according to the researchers.

“It is well known that [BP] will increase more markedly with aging in people who have higher [BPs] in their young adult lives than those who had lower values. We do not know for certain whether this will be the case for individuals born preterm because the first survivors of extreme prematurity are only entering their 30s and 40s,” Nuyt said in the release. – by Dave Quaile

Reference:

Paquette K, et al. Abstract 134. Presented at: American Heart Association’s Council on Hypertension Scientific Sessions; Sept. 14-16, 2016; Orlando, Fla.

Disclosure: Nuyt reports no relevant financial disclosures.