[Comparison and reproducibility of 4 methods of indirect blood pressure measurement in moderate hypertension].

UNLABELLED: The measurements and the reproducibility of ambulatory, home, clinic and repeated non ambulatory automatic blood pressure (BP) were compared in 16 patients (45 +/- 11 yrs) with mild untreated hypertension (BP: 164 +/- 12/101 +/- 6 mmHg at the selection visit); 26 +/- 19 days after this visit, each patient had two sets of BP measurements in 4 different ways taken 2 weeks apart under similar study conditions: daily ambulatory recordings (ABP), home self-measurement readings (over 5 days) (HBP), 2-minute repeated automatic BP measurements during the 20 minutes preceding the physician examination (RABP) and clinic BP (CBP) with a standard sphygmomanometer mercury column. The reproducibility was assessed by standard deviation of the differences (SDD). Decisions to treat the patients were made according to the results obtained by CBP (BP > 140/90 mmHg during the selection visit and the 2 study visits), by the first ABP (mean BP > 139/87 mmHg) and by the first week of HBP (mean BP > 127/83 mmHg) were compared; the outcome of these three procedures was then compared.

RESULTS

[table: see text]

CONCLUSION

Repeated automatic and clinic BP were higher than ambulatory and home BP. Reproducibility of ambulatory and home BP were comparable and better than clinic or repeated automatic BP. The percentage of decision to treat according to the results of clinic, home and ambulatory BP was comparable but they were not the same patients who were treated with the 3 methods.