Pediatric BP Percentile Calculator
AAP 2017 percentiles, category thresholds, and age curves
Office right-arm BP • Ages 1–17 • Auscultatory reference data
Measurement and interpretation guide
Before entering a reading
- Seat the child quietly for 3–5 minutes with back supported, feet uncrossed, and the right arm supported at heart level.
- Use the correct cuff size. If the initial BP is elevated, obtain 2 additional readings at the same visit and average them; the Average 2–3 mode below performs the arithmetic.
- Confirm an elevated oscillometric average with 2 auscultatory readings and use their average for categorization.
What this result means
- The output is the category for this reading, not a diagnosis.
- For ages 1–12, the lower of the percentile-based or absolute AAP threshold applies. At age 13 and older, fixed AAP adolescent thresholds apply.
- The BP model uses measured height directly. The CDC length/height percentile is shown as a measurement check and does not limit the BP model’s age range.
Patient and blood pressure inputs
Blood pressure result
A single reading does not diagnose hypertension. Diagnosis requires auscultatory-confirmed high readings across separate visits.
AAP category thresholds for this reading
Distance to thresholds
Percentile reference values
Interactive BP reference curves
Switch between the actual category cutoffs and the underlying percentile curves. Hover, touch, or use the arrow keys on a chart to inspect values.
Systolic BP by age
Diastolic BP by age
AAP simplified screening table
These are screening cutoffs for deciding whether a reading needs further evaluation. They are intentionally conservative and are not diagnostic thresholds.
| Age | Male | Female | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| SBP | DBP | SBP | DBP | |
| 1 | 98 | 52 | 98 | 54 |
| 2 | 100 | 55 | 101 | 58 |
| 3 | 101 | 58 | 102 | 60 |
| 4 | 102 | 60 | 103 | 62 |
| 5 | 103 | 63 | 104 | 64 |
| 6 | 105 | 66 | 105 | 67 |
| 7 | 106 | 68 | 106 | 68 |
| 8 | 107 | 69 | 107 | 69 |
| 9 | 107 | 70 | 108 | 71 |
| 10 | 108 | 72 | 109 | 72 |
| 11 | 110 | 74 | 111 | 74 |
| 12 | 113 | 75 | 114 | 75 |
| ≥13 | 120 | 80 | 120 | 80 |
Methods, references, and validation
Scope
This tool interprets office BP for ages 1–17. It is not an ABPM calculator, a hypotension reference, or a neonatal/infant-under-1 reference. It does not account for symptoms, comorbidities, cuff error, or treatment history.
Primary references
- AAP 2017 Clinical Practice Guideline — definitions, thresholds, measurement, and follow-up.
- Rosner et al., 2008 — quantile-regression method underlying the BP curves.
- CDC 2000 growth-chart LMS data — monthly length/stature percentile check.
Validation
- 1,904 published-table comparisons: both sexes, ages 1–17, seven height percentiles, SBP/DBP, and four printed rows (50th, 90th, 95th, 95th + 12).
- Boundary coverage: pediatric/adolescent transition, all category edges, unit conversion, extreme percentiles, invalid inputs, and date handling.
- Browser regressions: interaction, keyboard behavior, copy/print controls, graph rendering, mobile overflow, internal links, and runtime errors.
Displayed BP z-scores are normal-equivalent z values derived from interpolation across the Rosner 1st–99th quantile curves; values outside that modeled range are reported as bounded rather than extrapolated.
Version 3.1 • Implementation and automated test suite reviewed August 3, 2026; this is not independent clinical certification. Calculations run locally in your browser. Patient entries are neither submitted nor stored; only the height-unit preference is retained on this device.
Built from AAP 2017 / Rosner reference methods • No external scripts, trackers, or patient-data submission