Seasonal variations affect not only clinic but also home and 24-hour ambulatory blood pressure, with summer associated with the lowest and winter with the highest values.
Cross-Sectional (n=2,051)
Do seasonal variations affect home and ambulatory blood pressure measurements?
Seasonal variations significantly affect not only clinic blood pressure but also home and 24-hour ambulatory blood pressure, with lower values in summer and higher in winter.
OBJECTIVE: Clinic blood pressure values are known to change according to seasonal influences. We therefore examined home and 24 h ambulatory blood pressure values to determine whether these measurements are also affected by the seasons. DESIGN AND METHODS: In 2051 subjects of the Pressione Arteriose Monitorate E Loro Associazioni (PAMELA) study, we measured clinic (sphygmomanometric measurements), home (semi-automatic device) and ambulatory (Spacelabs 90207) systolic blood pressure, diastolic blood pressure and heart rate. Because the overall sample was evenly distributed over each month (except August), we were able to make a cross-sectional determination of whether the values differed between seasons. The corresponding heart rates were also evaluated. RESULTS: As expected, summer was associated with the lowest clinic blood pressure and winter with the highest, and this was the case also for home and 24 h average blood pressure, although seasonal differences in the latter were less pronounced. Seasonal clinic, home and ambulatory blood pressure patterns were similar for normotensive subjects (n = 1152), untreated hypertensives (n = 540) and treated hypertensives (n = 359). Heart rate values did not differ by season. CONCLUSIONS: Seasonal influences on blood pressure are not limited to conventional measurements but characterize daily values as well. These effects are visible in both normal and elevated blood pressure values, regardless of the effect of antihypertensive drugs. This has implications both for the clinician and for studies aimed at evaluating the effects of antihypertensive treatment.
Sega et al. (Sun,) conducted a cross-sectional in Hypertension (n=2,051). Seasonal variation was evaluated on Clinic, home, and 24 h ambulatory systolic and diastolic blood pressure and heart rate. Seasonal variations affect not only clinic but also home and 24-hour ambulatory blood pressure, with summer associated with the lowest and winter with the highest values.
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