Prevalence of elevated body mass index and blood pressure in a rural school-aged population: implications for school nurses

The Journal of School Health
Carol Ann KingMelvin Swanson

Abstract

The growing prevalence of overweight in students and adolescents has become a matter of national concern and is linked to a rise in chronic health conditions in students who previously had low prevalence rates, such as cardiovascular disease. This study examined the relationships between age, ethnicity, race, body mass index (BMI), and elevated blood pressure (BP) in a rural school age population. Data are reported for 1121 students in grades K-11. The sample was 55% African American, 41% Caucasian, 3% Hispanic, and 1% other. The prevalence of students at risk of being overweight (BMI > or =85th percentile) was 46.5%, and the prevalence of overweight students (BMI > or =95th percentile) was 29.1%. The prevalence of elevated BP was 21.6%. Elevated BMI and BP were more prevalent in older students. While there was a direct relationship between elevated BMI and elevated BP for all groups, African Americans were more likely to have an elevated BP with a normal BMI. These findings demonstrate the important role of the school nurse in providing effective prevention strategies related to screening, follow-up, and treatment.

References

Jul 3, 2002·Pediatrics·Susan L Hall
Oct 9, 2002·JAMA : the Journal of the American Medical Association·Cynthia L OgdenClifford L Johnson
Mar 19, 2003·Journal of the American Academy of Nurse Practitioners·Rosalind M Peters, John M Flack
Apr 12, 2003·The Journal of Cardiovascular Nursing·Joanne S HarrellLaura L Hayman
Aug 31, 2004·American Journal of Public Health·Lorna E ThorpeThomas R Frieden

❮ Previous
Next ❯

Citations

Mar 8, 2008·Public Health Nutrition·Halimatou AlaofèHuguette Turgeon O'Brien
Jul 24, 2010·International Journal of Nursing Practice·Ina K Borup, Bjørn E Holstein
Jan 8, 2008·The Journal of School Health·Lauren B ZapataJennie A Hefelfinger
Jul 1, 2010·Fiziologiia cheloveka·N B PankovaM Iu Karganov
Jun 8, 2012·High Blood Pressure & Cardiovascular Prevention : the Official Journal of the Italian Society of Hypertension·Matías TringlerAlejandro Diaz
Nov 2, 2011·American Journal of Health Promotion : AJHP·Nancy E FindholtVictoria W Brogoitti
Feb 27, 2010·Journal of Pediatric Nursing·Janet C MeiningerSharon Sterchy
May 25, 2015·The Journal of Pediatrics·Ranjit PhilipKanwaljeet J S Anand
Feb 19, 2013·American Journal of Preventive Medicine·Javier I RosadoJordan P Cuevas
Dec 15, 2010·The Journal of School Nursing : the Official Publication of the National Association of School Nurses·Ann M StalterRosanta M Barker
Dec 31, 2008·The Journal of School Nursing : the Official Publication of the National Association of School Nurses·Dianne Yow Daniels
Apr 3, 2020·The Journal of School Health·Juliet SilbersteinSarah E Messiah

❮ Previous
Next ❯

Related Concepts

Related Feeds

Cardiovascular Disease Pathophysiology

Cardiovascular disease involves several different processes that contribute to the pathological mechanism, including hyperglycemia, inflammation, atherosclerosis, hypertension and more. Vasculature stability plays a critical role in the development of the disease. Discover the latest research on cardiovascular disease pathophysiology here.

Related Papers

American Journal of Public Health
Deanna M HoelscherMichael E Scheurer
International Journal of Obesity and Related Metabolic Disorders : Journal of the International Association for the Study of Obesity
M K ParkJ Schoolfield
© 2021 Meta ULC. All rights reserved