Low birthweight tied to high BP in adulthood
(Reuters)
Updated: 2006-09-22 10:12
NEW YORK - New research hints that the lower the birthweight, the higher the
blood pressure as an adult - and the link becomes stronger with age.
Dr. Anna A. Davies and her associates at the University of Bristol, UK, are
studying the origins of adult hypertension (high blood pressure) using a large
database of 25,874 employees, average age 38 years, who underwent pre-employment
screening for a large British company.
Birthweights were established by recall for most employees. Overall, age- and
sex-adjusted systolic blood pressure (the upper number in a standard reading)
dropped 0.8 millimeters mercury (mmHg) for every 1 kg increase in birthweight.
For the 744 subjects with birthweight records, systolic blood pressure
dropped 1.4 mmHg for every 1 kg increase in birthweight, investigators report.
For subjects older than 55 years, blood pressure change was 33.9 mmHg for
each 1 kg increase in birthweight.
Because of the "robust" association between birthweight and blood pressure
for subjects with birthweight records in the UK study, the investigators believe
that other studies showing a weaker association may be the result of recall
bias.
"Further research is required to elucidate whether this birthweight association
with adult blood pressure reflects intrauterine programming, a common
genetic mechanism, the influence of post-natal growth and development or
biologic interactions between these potential mechanisms," the authors write in
the journal Hypertension.
In an accompanying editorial, Dr. David J. P. Barker of Oregon Health and
Science University in Portland comments that the increasing strength of the link
"is consistent with the existence of self-perpetuating cycles of rising blood
pressure and renal damage."
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