Blood pressure reactivity in urban youth during angry and normal talking

A pilot study evaluates blood pressure reactivity along with gender and biologic maturity in teenagers discussing angry life circumstances and how their life is going. Systolic and diastolic blood pressure went up during the talking, and adding biologic maturity to the analysis showed males to have higher systolic blood pressure than was true for females in the protocol. In general, mature subjects had both higher systolic and higher diastolic blood pressures than did less mature subjects. Continued research on this aspect of the health of adolescents may add to understanding of gender differences in adult cardiovascular disease.