[ID 44983] AVALIAÇÃO DOS NÍVEIS PRESSÓRICOS E ANTROPOMÉTRICOS DE ESCOLARES NO INTERIOR DO NORDESTE BRASILEIRO

Abstract

Objective: To evaluate the influence of overweight on blood pressure (BP) values of schoolers aged 4 to 17 years in a city in the Sergipe countryside. Methodology: This is a cross-sectional study, in which 119 students from 5 schools were evaluated through anthropometric evaluation and BP values. The students were classified as their nutritional status and the presence of BP levels altered according to the percentiles proposed by the World Health Organization and the Brazilian Society of Cardiology, respectively. Data were then analyzed statistically in the GraphPad Prism V7.0 program, using the Mann Whitney test for comparison and the Spearman coefficient for correlation between two variables, being adopted as a significance level of 5%. Results: Of the 119 students evaluated, 8.41% were considered underweight, 38.32% were eutrophic and 53.27% were overweight. Overweight students presented greater measures of Abdominal Circumference. A strong and positive correlation was also observed between the values of BMI-z and the CA/A ratio, where students with higher BMI-z values also had higher values of the CA/A ratio. In addition, a greater number of students with altered BP levels were observed among those who had greater measures of both BMI-z and CA/A ratio. Conclusion: Children and adolescents with altered BP had a higher mean BMI and higher CA/A ratio compared to those with normal BP, which reveals the need for intervention in this population for prevention and health promotion. DESCRIPTORS: Obesity. Overweight. Blood Pressure. Child. Adolescent. Public Health.