Pharmacological treatment of childhood hypertension

Abstract

There are a great number of drugs available in the market for the treatment of arterial hypertension. New drugs whose effectiveness and toxicity are studied only in adults, are introduced, and so their efficacy, safety and effect on growth and development in children are not known. Hypertension in paedriatrics is usually due to renal causes. Choice of treatment will depend on the etiology, degree of hypertension and organ involvement as well as the physician´s experience. This article outlines step by step the usual treatment of hypertension in children and some special cases, such as hypertensive emergencies requiring admission to an ITU as well as newborn hypertension, which is being diagnosed with increasing frequency, and hypertension in chronic renal failure that require careful dose adjustments depending on renal function and in which careful management can prevent or retard further renal deterioration.