White coat hypertension in adolescents.

Background: Although white coat hypertension (WCH) seems to occur in 20% or more of the adult hypertensive population, this clinical condition has rarely been described in adolescents. Design: Routine use of ambulatory blood pressure monitoring (ABPM) procedure as part of the investigation of arterial hypertension in adolescents. Methods: Office blood pressure was checked after 5 minutes of rest in the seated position by the auscultation method and ABPM was performed with oscillometrical equipment (SpaceLabs 90207, Redmond, Washington, USA). Results: In the present study 6 adolescents (5 females, 3 white), suspected to suffer from arterial hypertension as judged by office blood pressure measurements, mean age 15.1 years (12.2 - 17.7), mean height 164.5 cm, mean weight 77.2 kg, mean body mass index 28.8 kg/m 2 (25 - 35.2), were diagnosed with WCH using ambulatory blood pressure monitoring (ABPM). Conclusion: White coat hypertension should also be considered in the evaluation of arterial hypertension in adolescents.