Adolescent cardiovascular health is the academic study focused on the development, function, and health status of the cardiovascular system during the adolescent developmental period. This research area investigates biological, behavioral, and environmental factors influencing cardiovascular risk and resilience, recognizing this stage as critical for shaping long-term cardiovascular well-being.
Ontological type
Risk Factor Profile
Preventive Interventions
Behavioral Determinants
Life-Course Risk
1985 - 2001
Fitness and Adiposity
2002 - 2015
Risk Clustering and Screening
2016 - 2022
Life-Course Risk era
Jean Golding[1] is a leading figure in adolescent cardiovascular health during the Life-Course Risk era, with affiliations reflected by University of California, San Francisco[3] and Albert Einstein College of Medicine[4]. Her key contributions, highlighted by the 1989 paper Growth in utero, blood pressure in childhood and adult life, and mortality from cardiovascular disease[7], linked fetal growth to later cardiovascular risk and helped establish early-life determinants of cardiovascular disease. Clive Osmond[2] pursued influential work across University of Wisconsin–Madison[5] and University of Cambridge[6] during this era. His contributions, as reflected in the same 1989 paper[7], demonstrated the life-course linkage between in utero growth, childhood blood pressure, and adult cardiovascular outcomes, reinforcing longitudinal surveillance and early-intervention approaches.
Fitness and Adiposity era
Stephen R. Daniels[1] emerged as a leading figure in adolescent cardiovascular health during this era, with affiliations including Harvard University[4] and Greenville College[3]. His key contributions include Cardiovascular Health in Childhood[6] (2002), Noninvasive Assessment of Subclinical Atherosclerosis in Children and Adolescents[7] (2009), and Nontraditional Risk Factors and Biomarkers for Cardiovascular Disease: Mechanistic, Research, and Clinical Considerations for Youth[8] (2011), which helped establish early-life risk profiling and the value of noninvasive assessment in youth. Laura L. Hayman[2] has also been a prominent scholar at Harvard University[4] and the University of California, San Francisco[5] during this era. Her contributions include co-authorship of Cardiovascular Health in Childhood[6] (2002), Noninvasive Assessment of Subclinical Atherosclerosis in Children and Adolescents[7] (2009), and Nontraditional Risk Factors and Biomarkers for Cardiovascular Disease: Mechanistic, Research, and Clinical Considerations for Youth[8] (2011), which reinforced how fitness, adiposity, and biomarkers shape youth cardiometabolic trajectories and prevention priorities[6][7][8].
Risk Clustering and Screening era
Elaine M. Urbina [1] conducted influential work across the University of Alabama at Birmingham [3] and the University of Colorado Denver [4] during the Risk Clustering and Screening era. Her key contributions include the Clinical Practice Guideline for Screening and Management of High Blood Pressure in Children and Adolescents (2017) [7], the Cardiovascular Risk Reduction in High-Risk Pediatric Patients: A Scientific Statement From the American Heart Association (2019) [8], and Prevalence of arterial stiffness in adolescents with type 2 diabetes in the TODAY cohort: Relationships to glycemic control and other risk factors (2018) [9], which advanced biomarker-informed screening and risk stratification. Samuel S. Gidding [2] has affiliations with the American College of Preventive Medicine [5] and Johns Hopkins University [6] during this era. His contributions center on the 2017 Clinical Practice Guideline for Screening and Management of High Blood Pressure in Children and Adolescents [7] and the 2018 Prevalence of arterial stiffness in adolescents with type 2 diabetes in the TODAY cohort [9], illustrating how biomarker-informed screening and risk clustering informed early, risk-based intervention in adolescents.