Screening for Primary Hypertension in Children and Adolescents: U.S. Preventive Services Task Force Recommendation

DESCRIPTION: Update of the 2003 U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) recommendation on screening for high blood pressure in children and adolescents. METHODS: The USPSTF reviewed the evidence on screening and diagnostic accuracy of screening tests for blood pressure in children and adolescents, the effectiveness and harms of treatment of screendetected primary childhood hypertension, and the association of hypertension with markers of cardiovascular disease in childhood and adulthood. POPULATION: This recommendation applies to children and adolescents who do not have symptoms of hypertension. RECOMMENDATION: The USPSTF concludes that the current evidence is insufficient to assess the balance of benefits and harms of screening for primary hypertension in asymptomatic children and adolescents to prevent subsequent cardiovascular disease in childhood or adulthood. Pediatrics 2013;132:1–8 AUTHORS: Virginia A. Moyer, MD, MPH, on behalf of the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force† This article was published at www.annals.org on 8 October 2013. www.pediatrics.org/cgi/doi/10.1542/peds.2013-2864 doi:10.1542/peds.2013-2864 The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force found that the current evidence is insufficient to recommend screening for hypertension in asymptomatic children and adolescents. *The article appeared simultaneously in Annals of Internal Medicine and Pediatrics. Readers who wish to cite the article should use the following citation: Moyer VA, U.S. Preventive Services Task Force. Screening for primary hypertension in children and adolescents: U.S. Preventive Services Task Force recommendation statement. Ann Intern Med. 2013. [Epub ahead of print October 8, 2013]. †For a list of USPSTF members, see the Appendix (available at