PhD student receives Tonya Kara Paediatric Research Award for blood pressure screening program in schools

Jonathan Glenning, a PhD candidate from the Faculty of Medicine, Dentistry and Health Sciences, has received the Tonya Kara Paediatric Research Award from the Australian and New Zealand Society of Nephrology, for his research into high blood pressure in school children.

Jonathan and his team screened almost 200 children as part of the pilot screening program, Healthy Hearts @ School, in three primary schools in Melbourne, where they also ran educational sessions for 350 students.

“It is a great privilege to be the awardee this year as Tonya was a brilliant and extremely well-loved clinician scientist, and I aspire to be able to live up to her example in my own career,” Jonathan said.

High blood pressure is one of the most significant risk factors for cardiovascular disease, as it leads to an increase in risk of heart attacks and strokes. There is strong evidence that having high blood pressure as a child leads to around a 35% increased risk of cardiovascular events as an adult (aged 40-50).

"There has been so much work already done in adulthood around blood pressure and cardiovascular disease, but far less work in childhood. Being able to dig into these big picture issues that very few people are thinking about has been intellectually very rewarding for me,” Jonathan said.

“I’ve always been interested in the big picture work, and nothing is bigger picture than prevention, which is much easier and more effective the earlier you do it. So, what better time than in childhood?”

Despite the challenges of COVID lockdowns and navigating the school system, Jonathan and his team found that parents, children and teachers were happy to be involved in the sessions. “Most importantly, we found children who had no idea they had high blood pressure. We were able to refer them on, and we know this early intervention is key to reducing their long-term risk of heart and kidney disease,” he said.

Reflecting on the experience, Jonathan said that the best part was going into the schools to run interactive sessions, “The children consistently showed how they understood more than anyone expected and were very interested in the stuff we were teaching them, to the point that they often came and asked questions on subsequent days while we were at the schools.”

“I would like to acknowledge and thank my supervisors, Associate Professor Jonathan Mynard, Associate Professor Catherine Quinlan, Associate Professor Stephanie Best, and Professor Michael Cheung, as well as our collaborators Dr Freya Sheeran and Associate Professor Jon Quach. I also thank the Shepherd Foundation for their project support, and the Commonwealth Government of Australia Department of Education for their financial support,” Jonathan said.