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Is Elevated BP In A Teenage Sportsman Concerning?
Hi. My son is 15 years old. He is 6'6" and weighs 285. He plays on freshman football. He just had a physical in July with his BP at 130/80. His pediatrician said he was fine to play football (in fact she encouraged it). This past week he has had a cold and I have been giving him Dayquil. This morning school called to say they thought he seemed ill so they sent him to the nurse. His BP was 160/90. They were very concerned. I went and picked him up. Now his BP is 130/60. Should I be concerned about this?
Wed, 17 Sep 2014
Dear user,
Thank you for your question.
in order to monitor blood pressure properly you need a diary for the reading for at least one week, and monitoring the blood pressure from home is better than doing in the hospital some people have what is called white coat effect once the doctors are around they get anxious and blood pressure increases.
so please monitor your son's blood pressure from home twice per day once he is rested and not after exercise, no coffee or tea. check that for around a week and write down his reading. bring your readings to your family doctor to decide on proper course of action if there is clear evidence of increased blood pressure, and by that you will be assured of your son's health.
stay well, hope this was helpful
Dr. Nazzal
Thank you for your question.
in order to monitor blood pressure properly you need a diary for the reading for at least one week, and monitoring the blood pressure from home is better than doing in the hospital some people have what is called white coat effect once the doctors are around they get anxious and blood pressure increases.
so please monitor your son's blood pressure from home twice per day once he is rested and not after exercise, no coffee or tea. check that for around a week and write down his reading. bring your readings to your family doctor to decide on proper course of action if there is clear evidence of increased blood pressure, and by that you will be assured of your son's health.
stay well, hope this was helpful
Dr. Nazzal
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