title: Leontio Lyceum ALbuminuria (3L Study) epidemiological study: aims, design and preliminary findings.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  The significance of microalbuminuria (MA) in paediatric essential hypertension has yet to be established. The Leontio Lyceum ALbuminuria Study (3L Study) was designed to determine the prevalence of MA among Greek schoolchildren and to evaluate these rates in relation to the children's anthropometric and lifestyle characteristics, and dietary habits.
  
  
  METHODS
  During April 2009, 498 students from the Leontio Lyceum, aged 12-17 years (7th-12th grade), were asked to participate in the 3L Study. For each child a questionnaire was completed that was developed for the purposes of the study to retrieve information on socio-demographic and lifestyle characteristics, as well as dietary habits (through a semi-quantitative Food Frequency Questionnaire), and physical activity status. Overweight and obesity were defined using the international body mass index cut-off points established for children and young people. Office blood pressure (BP) was measured on two different occasions and those students who had BP >95th percentile for gender, age and height on both occasions were considered as hypertensives. Microalbuminuria was determined as albumin to creatinine ratio >or=22 mg/g in boys and >or=31 mg/g in girls in a morning spot urine sample using a quantitative assay (DCA 2000).
  
  
  RESULTS
  The prevalence of MA was found to be 12.9% and that of childhood hypertension 5.2%. The prevalence of overweight status was 25.8% and 5.8% of the students were classified as obese. Low physical activity was reported by 7% of boys and girls, while 46.5% of the students reported participation in vigorous physical activities during a normal week. Based on the KIDMED score of each student, only 6% of them were classified as high adherers to a Mediterranean diet and 41.9% were classified as having very low diet quality.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  In this paper we present the aims, design and preliminary results of an epidemiological study on MA, hypertension, increased body size and lifestyle characteristics among Greek schoolchildren.
authors: First Cardiology Clinic, University of Athens, Hippokration Hospital, Athens, Greece. ktsioufis@hippocratio.gr
authors: Costas
authors: C
authors: Tsioufis
authors: Dimitris
authors: D
authors: Tsiachris
authors: Kyriakos
authors: K
authors: Dimitriadis
authors: Costas
authors: C
authors: Thomopoulos
authors: Dimitris
authors: D
authors: Syrseloudis
authors: Eirini
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authors: Andrikou
authors: Dimitris
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authors: Chatzis
authors: Efstathios
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authors: Taxiarchou
authors: Maria
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authors: Selima
authors: Anastasia
authors: A
authors: Mazaraki
authors: Giorgos
authors: G
authors: Chararis
authors: Panagiotis
authors: P
authors: Tolis
authors: Aliki
authors: A
authors: Gennadi
authors: Ioannis
authors: I
authors: Andrikou
authors: Elli
authors: E
authors: Stefanadi
authors: Vagelis
authors: V
authors: Fragoulis
authors: Vanessa
authors: V
authors: Tzamou
authors: Demosthenes
authors: D
authors: Panagiotakos
authors: Dimitris
authors: D
authors: Tousoulis
authors: Christodoulos
authors: C
authors: Stefanadis
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000419:Albuminuria / Q000453:epidemiology*; D000886:Anthropometry; D001794:Blood Pressure; D002648:Child; D004032:Diet; D015444:Exercise; D005260:Female; D006115:Greece / Q000453:epidemiology; D006339:Heart Rate; D006801:Humans; D006973:Hypertension / Q000453:epidemiology; D008019:Life Style; D008297:Male; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires