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Low BP in 13 year old
Hi Mrs B and D – my thirteen year old daughter complained of stomach pain as she got up and in a few hours felt too dizzy and uncomfortable. I checked her BP and it was 85/41. This is after she had her breakfast and have been drinking water. I gave her fluids and a bit of food and it came upto 100/57. She complained of headache and neck pain too. She said her bowel movement in the morning was bit on the watery side. But not bad and it was just once.I took her the doc immediately and the doctor thought the low BP is coz of anemia as she has had dizzy moments before but Short ones and also during her periods . She said the stomach pain and head ache are just coincidental and don’t think linked to low BP. She asked me to just give her fluids and salty snacks. Her BP was normal at doc office . after we came back home she felt dizzy again and then it was 100/60 and she developed some temperature in the afternoon. I gave her Tylenol and she felt better in the evening. Through the day, I gave her bland food, pediolyte, coconut water, lemonade with bit of ginger . But again now at night ,10 pm , I checked her bp and it is 110/57;105/50 .. isn’t this too low? She is not feeling dizzy at the moment. But I am a bit worried . Can you please let me know your thoughts ?
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4 Replies
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Hey ,
I can imagine you feel worried. Before I dive into giving some tips about what might cause low blood pressure, a common mistake with measuring blood pressure with kids is that the cuff size is too big for their arms. Usually for small arms, you will need different cuffs. Did you check that?
I recently wrote a tip that dives deeper into how to measure blood pressure correctly. Did you by any chance see it? You can find it here.
Another thing to keep in mind is that the normal range for blood pressure for kids is different. For younger kids, it’s usually lower. Smaller kids can have lower blood pressure as well. These numbers without symptoms would not be a concern.
However, she does have some symptoms and if her blood volume is low, this can cause low blood pressure. Low blood volume can be caused by heavy blood loss during her period. Being dehydrated can also decrease blood volume, so the focus on hydration is a good one.
Other things that might be at play are hormonal changes. When estrogen and progesterone start to increase in women at that age, the body starts to change. But instead of a gradual increase in hormones, the rise is more bumpy and the body needs to adjust. This can take a few years and is normal.
If the dizziness and headache come just before her period, the dizziness might have a hormonal component. Did you notice if this is the case?
Anaemia can also cause dizziness and headaches. It would be good to know what type of anaemia is at play. If you feel like sharing her labs, Bernadette or I will take a look at them! Measurements that are helpful are a Red Blood Cell (RBC) Count, hemoglobin, MCV, MCH, MCHC, folate, vitamin B12, vitamin B6, iron and ferritin. All labs help, but these values will give us more insight and would help give you more personalized advice!
In order for the body to make red blood cells, the body also needs the right nutrients. Make sure she has enough vitamin D, vitamin B12, zinc and vitamin A.
Is she on a plant-based diet? If she is getting periods, her need for iron will increase as well. The enzymes in the stomach that free up iron need vitamin C to function as well. You could help iron absorption by adding vitamin C rich foods or using a vitamin C supplement.
I hope this helps!
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thank you for your thoughts. The cuff is adjustable, so I think that was okay. I will look into the link. I have the digital one. Should I switch to manual bp apparatus?
Her Bp and symptoms this time seems unrelated to periods as she is not on now. She just complained of stomach pain and that is improving now after 2 days.. so my assumption is stomach bug caused the low bp ? Is that even a possibility? But resting and fluids have improved it for now.
I am yet to do her blood work that covers quite a bunch of things . Will update once I get the test done and get results. Will also start her on Vit D, zinc supplements. She is vegetarian but eggs . However she is not a picky eater. I will also include vit C Rich foods and supplements and monitor . Thank you for your response .
Regards,
Vidyaa -
Hey ,
The cuff can be adjustable in width but after a certain point, the length of the cuff must also become smaller with smaller arms. This is why I do recommend different cuffs for smaller arms sizes.
There can be many reasons for stomach pain including dehydration. Since you have been giving her more liquids, it could also be simply that. But it’s hard for me to estimate. If symptoms reappear I would also advise you to ask her to put her hands on the area she is feeling the pain.
Kids feel things faster in their stomachs. Sometimes this is because they don’t understand anatomy well. In small kids, the organs are also smaller and located closer to each other which makes them feel as if it is their stomach.
I would however like to see what type of anemia is at play and address that.
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thank you!! It was a stomach flu and she got better in a week. Thank you again!!
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