Analysis of the Relationship among Kidney Volume, Obesity, and Blood Pressure in Mexican-American Children

Obesity causes a decrease kidney function and an increase in kidney volume. The aim of this study was to understand the relationship among kidney volume, obesity and blood pressure in Mexican-American children in South Texas.

To study those effects, data was collected from 454 ultrasound done on 289 girls and 762 ultrasound done on 382 boys visiting a pediatric clinic in South Texas from 2003 to 2018. The relationship between kidney volume and obesity was analyzed. IBM SPSS is used for data analysis.

Children with fatty livers have a higher kidney volume when compared to children with non-fatty livers. When comparing children classified as BMI percentile (0, 50%), BMI percentile [50%, 85%), BMI percentile [85%, 95%), and BMI percentile above 95%, the kidney volume is increasing as BMI percentile increases. We also found that there is a positive relationship between the kidney volume and systolic blood pressure. Children with high systolic blood pressure (above 119 mmHg) have a larger volume when compared to children with low blood pressure (above 110 but less than or equal 119 mmHg), 110 and below mmHg. 

Obesity causes inflammation, and lipid accumulation. These effects can cause an increase in kidney volume. Kidney volume increases can be caused by hypertension. This is even severe for Mexican-American children in south Texas.