The number of children hospitalized with high blood pressure nearly doubled in a single decade, according to a new study.
Not only are more children being diagnosed with high blood pressure (hypertension), but these children also cost more to treat and stay longer in the hospital, researchers from the University of Michigan said.
"The increasing hospitalizations may in part be due to the rise in childhood obesity," said lead researcher Dr. Cheryl Tran, a pediatrician at C.S. Mott Children's Hospital, which is affiliated with the university.
"A child with high blood pressure is at increased risk of developing high blood pressure in adulthood and the long-term complications that are associated with hypertension," she added.
The report was published June 18 in the journal Hypertension. Read more from U.S. News.
