A multicentre study on unattended automated office blood pressure measurement in treated hypertensive patients

AIMS

Unattended automated office blood pressure (uAutoOBP) may eliminate white-coat effect. In the present study, we studied its relationships to attended office blood pressure (BP) and ambulatory BP monitoring (ABPM).

MATERIAL AND METHODS

Stable treated hypertensive subjects were examined in four Czech academic hypertension centres. uAutoOBP was measured with the BP Tru device; attended BP was measured six times: three times with auscultatory method (AuscOBP) by the physician followed optionally by three oscillometric measurements (OscOBP). ABPM was performed within one week from the clinical visit.

RESULTS

Data on 172 subjects aged 63.7 ± 12.4 years with AuscOBP 127.6 ± 12.1/77.6 ± 10.0 mm Hg are reported. uAutoOBP was by 8.5 ± 9.0/3.0 ± 6.1 mm Hg lower than AuscOBP. The AuscOBP-uAutoOBP difference increased with the AuscOBP level and it did not depend on any other factor. OscOBP differed by 8.6 ± 8.6/1.9 ± 5.7 mm Hg from uAutoOBP. 24-hour mean BP was by 4.2 ± 12.1/3.5 ± 7.8 mm Hg lower than AuscOBP and by 4.3 ± 11.0/0.5 ± 6.9 mm Hg higher than uAutoOBP; the correlation coefficients of 24-hour mean BP with AuscOBP and with uAutoOBP did not differ (p for difference ≥.13). In the lowest BP group (systolic AuscOBP <120 mm Hg or diastolic AuscOBP <70 mm Hg), both AuscOBP and uAutoOBP were lower than 24-hour mean BP, while in the highest BP group (systolic AuscOBP ≥140 mm Hg or diastolic AuscOBP ≥90 mm Hg), they were higher.

CONCLUSIONS

Compared to uAutoOBP, attended BP measurement gives higher values, both when measured with auscultatory or oscillometric method. Inter-individual variability of AutoOBP - uAuscOBP difference, as well of uAutoOBP - ABPM difference, is large. We did not prove that uAutoOBP would be associated to 24-hour ambulatory BP more closely than attended BP.

Endothelial function, its relation to arterial hypertension and the possibility of its modulation

Endothelium has both a protective and a very complex para-, endo- and autocrine functions. Vascular tone is determined as a balance between the production of vasodilating and vasoconstrictive substances. Among the most important vasodilators are nitric oxide (NO), PGI2, endothelial-derived hyperpolarizing factor (EDHF), adenosine and others, among the most important vasoconstrictors, endothelin-1 and angiotensin-2. Therapeutic goal of improving endothelial secretory function should be maximizing production of vasodilators and minimizing production of vasoconstrictors. Improvement of endothelial function can be achieved most effectively by following a healthy lifestyle (changing the diet to a Mediterranean type, sufficient physical activity, weight reduction and smoking cessation) and by initiating the treatment with ACE inhibitors and statins, when indicated. Large number of trials have shown that all of these interventions improve the prognosis of patients and a part of this effect may be mediated by improving endothelial dysfunction. Key words: endothelial dysfunction - endothelium - hypertension.

[Clinical significance of natriuretic peptides in the differential diagnosis of dyspnea]

Acute dyspnea is one of the most common emergency department symptoms. But early diagnosis and treatment could be e challenging because of multiple potential causes. The gold standard biomarkers in cardiac dyspnea are B-type natriuretic peptide (BNP) and N-terminal pro-B-type (natriuretic peptide NT-pro BNP), which play an important role in the diagnosis, prognosis, and management of acute decompensated heart failure. The purpose of this review is to analyze diagnostic potential of BNP and NT-pro BNP biomarkers use in patients with acute dyspnea. BNP and NT-proBNP are markers of cardiac stress but are not cardiac-specific. They have comparable clinical utility, and both help in excluding acute cardiac dyspnea but they cannot reliably discriminate systolic from diastolic HF.Key word: acute dyspnea - natriuretic peptide - heart failure.