Influence of repeated measurement on one occasion, on successive days, and on workdays on home blood pressure values

Few reports provide clear guidelines on how home blood pressure (HBP) should be measured in practice. In this study, we evaluated the influence of repeated HBP measurements on one occasion, and the difference between the 1st and 2nd day and between workdays and nonworkdays. The subjects (468 male, 232 female; mean age 41 years) were recruited from one company. HBP was measured with a semiautomatic device (Omron HEM-759P). Subjects were instructed to perform triplicate morning (m) and evening (e) measurements on 7 consecutive days. HBP tended to decrease during repeated measurements: systolic blood pressure (SBP) was significantly higher the 1st time than the 2nd time and 3rd time. There was no difference in diastolic blood pressure (DBP) between the 1st and 2nd time, but the value the 3rd time was significantly lower than the 1st and 2nd time. Both mHBP and eHBP on the 1st day were significantly higher than those on the 2nd day. mHBP was higher on the 1st workday than on nonworkdays, but the difference was less than 1 mmHg and there was no significant difference. Since there were significant differences in HBP during repeated measurements and between the 1st and 2nd day, which value to adopt as HBP needs to be discussed. Whether HBP was measured on a workday or a nonworkday seemed to have little influence on the HBP values obtained.     

The white-coat response in ambulatory blood pressure monitoring: elimination and attenuation

BACKGROUND: The white-coat response can be identifiede on ambulatory blood pressure (ABP) monitoring (ABPM) and it is seen for around 2 h if the ABPM period is started in the hospital. The white-coat response to ABPM can be calculated by subtracting the 25th h ABP from the 1st h ABP; this eliminates any effect of the 24 h variation in blood pressure. METHODS: In this report we have examined whether the white-coat response is due to the environment alone or partly due to the ABPM machine (study 1). We also examined whether the white-coat response found with ABPM attenuates on repeated visits (study 2). In study 1 we started ABPM at the subject's home 3 h after an initial explanation and measurement of blood pressure in the hospital (hospital blood pressure) and examined the white-coat response (measured as the 1st h - 25th h ABP). In study 2 we performed ABPM on three occasions starting ABPM in the hospital and examined the magnitude of the white-coat response at each visit. RESULTS: In study 1 the hospital blood pressure was significantly higher than the hourly mean blood pressure at the same time of day on the following day. There was no significant difference between the 1st and 25th hourly means or the 2nd and 26th hourly means after the monitoring had been restarted at home. In study 2, the 1st and 25th mean hourly ambulatory blood pressures showed a significant reduction in the 1st h blood pressure over the three visits whereas the 25th h blood pressure was similar. The 1st h - 25 h systolic ambulatory blood pressure was significantly reduced ( P = 0.025) whereas the reduction in diastolic ambulatory blood pressure did not attain statistical significance (P = 0.182). CONCLUSION: The ABPM device itself does not cause the white-coat response seen on ABPM. This response appears to be related to the environment in which ABPM is commenced and can be eliminated by calculating the ABP beginning 3 h after the subject has left the hospital environment. Attenuation of this response is seen on repeated ABPM.     

Tele-monitoring of home blood pressure in treated hypertensive patients

AIM: To compare the accuracy of clinic blood pressure (CBP) and telemedical home blood pressure (HBP) measurement in the assessment of antihypertensive effect. METHODS: 362 patients on antihypertensive medication performed HBP measurement (5 days, duplicate measurements, four times daily) and ambulatory blood pressure (ABP) monitoring in random order. Main outcome measure was the agreement of CBP and HBP with daytime ABP. RESULTS: CBP was much higher than ABP and average HBP (p < 0.001). There was a progressive decline in HBP over the course of the study, achieving the level of daytime ABP on the last 2 monitoring days. The correlation between CBP and ABP was weak (systolic: r = 0.343, diastolic r = 0.430), whereas strong correlations existed between HBP and ABP (systolic r = 0.804, diastolic r = 0.776). A progressive improvement in the strength of the correlation between average HBP of single days and ABP was obtained over the 5 monitoring days. The HBP readings taken in the afternoon showed a stronger correlation with ABP than the values measured in the morning, at noon and in the evening. Averaging more HBP readings taken on succeeding days resulted in a progressive improvement in the agreement with ABP with a further benefit when readings of day 1 were included. CONCLUSIONS: The accuracy of telemedical HBP measurement is substantially better than that of CBP. The results suggest, that HBP should be measured for 5 days, and afternoon measurements should be preferred in assessing control of hypertension.     

射频导管消融后窦性心律维持对持续性心房颤动患者左心收缩和舒张功能的影响

目的探讨持续性心房颤动(房颤)患者射频消融后窦性心律维持对左心收缩和舒张功能的影响。方法入选2015年12月至2016年12月在江苏省人民医院心内科接受射频消融的持续性房颤患者。前瞻性观察术后第3天、1、2、3、6及12个月患者左心收缩功能[左心房内径(LAD)、左心室收缩末期内径(LVESD)、左心室舒张末期内径(LVEDD)、左心室射血分数(LVEF)]和左心舒张功能[舒张早期经二尖瓣血液流速峰值与舒张晚期流速峰值的比值(E/A)、舒张早期经二尖瓣血液流速峰值与二尖瓣环运动速度比值(E/e′)]的变化。术后相应随访时间点行24 h动态心电图检查以判断房颤是否复发。结果本研究共纳入持续性房颤患者34例,其中男27例、女7例,年龄(59.7±9.1)岁。术后第1、2、3、6和12个月LAD分别为(42.5±4.2)mm、(41.4±4.2)mm、(40.7±3.8)mm、(40.0±3.6)mm及(40.2±3.8)mm,较术后第3天(46.7±4.1)mm明显降低,差异有统计学意义(P<0.001)。术后第12个月LVESD较术前明显降低[(29.8±2.5)mm对(32.4±4.8)mm,P=0.02],但术后第1、2、3、6和12个月的LVEDD与术前相比差异无统计学意义(P=0.93、P=0.83、P=0.90、P=0.54、P=0.76)。术后第2、3、6和12个月时LVEF(66.3%±5.0%,66.7%±5.9%,66.6%±5.9%、68.7%±4.5%)与术前(62.2%±7.0%)相比明显提高,差异有统计学意义(P=0.05、P=0.01、P=0.02、P=0.001);术后第2、3、6和12个月LVEF与术后第1个月相比差异无统计学意义(P=0.73、P=0.54、P=0.57、P=0.10)。术后第1、2、3、6及12个月E/A(1.2±0.6、1.3±1.0、1.1±0.6、1.1±0.3、1.1±0.4)与术后第3天(2.4±1.0)相比差异有统计学意义(P<0.001)。同样,术后第1、2、3、6及12个月的E/e′(11.7±3.5、11.1±3.9、10.9±3.0、11.6±3.2、12.0±3.3)与术后第3天(14.7±4.6)相比差异具有统计学意义(P=0.002、P=0.001、P=0.001、P=0.002、P=0.01)。2例患者分别于术后第6个月和术后1年复发,再次消融均成功。1例患者术后12个月时失访。结论射频导管消融可改善持续性房颤患者的左心收缩和舒张功能,术后第1个月患者的收缩和舒张功能基本恢复。     

Usefulness of home blood pressure measurements in assessing the effect of treatment in a single-blind placebo-controlled open trial

OBJECTIVES: Reproducibility of home blood pressure measurements (HBP), and the placebo effect on HBP, were examined to establish the number of subjects required in order to observe a significant antihypertensive effect of a drug for a comparative study between placebo and active treatment. METHODS: Reproducibility of HBP (n = 172 for systolic blood pressure and n = 137 for diastolic blood pressure) and the placebo effect on HBP (n = 35 for systolic and n = 42 for diastolic blood pressure) were examined using a semi-automatic electronic device on untreated hypertensive subjects during 21 consecutive days of measurements. From these two studies, the number of subjects required in order to observe a significant antihypertensive drug effect was assessed. In both studies, measurements from the first 3 days were excluded from the analysis. RESULTS: Reproducibility, defined as the difference between the initial 5 day average (days 4-8) and the last 5 day average (days 17-21) was -1.9 +/- 7.0/-1.4 +/- 4.8 mmHg (mean +/- SD), indicating high reproducibility with a minimal regression to the mean effect. A placebo was administered after the 8 day run-in period. The difference between the initial 5 day average (days 4-8) and the last 5 day average (days 17-21) was compared. The mean difference was 1.1 +/- 6.2/0.2 +/- 5.7 mmHg, suggesting that there was a minimal, if any, placebo effect. As determined by the power calculations, based on the standard deviations of the tests for reproducibility and the placebo effect, nine of 13 subjects are required to show that a 9/5 mmHg decrease in systolic HBP/diastolic HBP (50% of estimated effective decrease in systolic HBP/diastolic HBP according to the guidelines for clinical trials in Japan) is statistically significant CONCLUSIONS: The results suggest that the HBP measurement is highly reproducible and that there is a minimal, if any, placebo effect. These characteristics of HBP contribute to minimizing the number of subjects necessary for assessment of antihypertensive drug effects in comparative studies between an active treatment and placebo.     

Accuracy of telemedical home blood pressure measurement in the diagnosis of hypertension

This study was conducted to compare the accuracy of clinic blood pressure (CBP) and telemedical home blood pressure (HBP) measurement in the diagnosis of hypertension in primary care. The study subjects were 411 patients with average CBP > or =140 mmHg systolic or > or =90 mmHg diastolic, who performed telemedical HBP measurement (5 days, four times daily) and ambulatory blood pressure (ABP) monitoring in random order. Main outcome measure was the agreement of CBP and HBP with daytime ABP. CBP was much higher than daytime ABP and average HBP (P<0.001) with no difference between the latter two. The correlation between CBP and ABP was weak (systolic: r=0.499, diastolic: r=0.543), whereas strong correlations existed between HBP and ABP (systolic: r=0.847, diastolic: r=0.812). A progressive improvement in the strength of the linear regression between average HBP of single days and ABP was obtained from day 1 to day 4, with no further benefit obtained on the fifth day. The HBP readings taken at noon and in the afternoon showed significantly stronger correlations with ABP than the blood pressures measured in the morning and in the evening. In conclusion, the accuracy of telemedical HBP measurement was substantially better than that of CBP in the diagnosis of hypertension in primary care. HBP most accurately reflected ABP on the fourth day of monitoring, and the readings at noon and in the afternoon seemed to be most accurate.     

Usefulness of morning home blood pressure measurements in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus: results of a 10-year,prospective, longitudinal study

Abstract

Previous cross-sectional studies and 6-year longitudinal study have demonstrated that home blood pressure (HBP) measurements upon awakening have a stronger predictive power for death, micro- and macrovascular complications than clinic blood pressure (CBP) measurements in patients with type 2 diabetes (T2DM). This study investigated which of these measurements offers stronger predictive power for outcomes over 10 years. At baseline, 400 Japanese patients with T2DM were classified as having hypertension (HT) or normotension (NT) based on HBP and CBP. The mean survey duration was 95 months. Primary and secondary end-points were death and new or worsened micro- and macrovascular complications, respectively. Differences in outcomes for each end-point between HT and NT patients were analyzed using Kaplan–Meier survival curves and log-rank testing. Associated risk factors were assessed using Cox proportional hazards analysis. Based on HBP, death and micro- and macrovascular complications were significantly higher in patients with HT than with NT at baseline and end-point. Based on CBP, there were no significant differences in incidence of death, micro- or macrovascular complications between patients with HT and NT at baseline and end-point, although a significant difference in incidence of death was observed between the HT and NT groups at end-point. However, the significance was significantly lower in CBP than in HBP. One risk factor associated with micro- and macrovascular complications in patients with HBP was therapy for HT. This 10-year longitudinal study of patients with T2DM demonstrated that elevated HBP upon awakening is predictive of death, and micro- and macrovascular complications.     

血压动态变量及心率变异性与原发性高血压左室重构的关系

目的利用动态血压和动态心电图监测技术分析其血压动态变量及心率变异性(HRV)指标与原发性高血压患者左室重构的关系。方法选择1,2级原发性高血压病患者168例进行超声心动图、动态血压及动态心电图检查,依据左室构型将高血压病患者分为第1,2,3,4组,4组分别为正常左室构型、向心性重构、向心性肥厚和离心性肥厚的患者。对4组的动态血压各项指标及HRV时域指标进行统计分析。结果4组间收缩压各项指标均有显著差异(P<0.05)。第3,4组的24h平均收缩压、夜间平均收缩压和收缩压负荷值均较第1,2组高,第3组的白昼平均收缩压较其他3组高。第3,4组的夜间舒张压较第1,2组高。第3,4组的HRV各时域指标较第1,2组均下降,其三项指标降低有显著性(P<0.05)。结论收缩压水平和HRV异常是高血压左室构型改变的重要危险因素。     

Assessment of the diurnal blood pressure profile and detection of non-dippers based on home or ambulatory monitoring

BackgroundA unique advantage of ambulatory blood pressure (ABP) monitoring is the assessment of nocturnal blood pressure (BP) and the detection of non-dippers. This study assessed nocturnal BP and non-dippers using a novel home BP (HBP) monitor.MethodsEighty-one hypertensives performed within 2 weeks ABP (24-h, Microlife WatchBP O3) and HBP monitoring (Microlife WatchBPN) during daytime (6 days, duplicate morning and evening measurements) and nighttime (automated asleep measurements, 3 nights, 3 readings/night). Patients' preference in using ABP or HBP was assessed by a questionnaire.ResultsStrong associations were found between ABP and HBP (intraclass correlation coefficients for awake systolic/diastolic 0.75/0.81; asleep 0.87/0.85). No statistically significant difference was found between HBP and ABP (mean difference ± SD awake systolic/diastolic 1.5 ± 10.1/-1.1 ± 6.0 mm Hg, P = 0.20/0.09; asleep -0.4 ± 7.8/-1.0 ± 5.3, P = 0.63/0.09). There was substantial agreement (74%, kappa 0.2) between ABP and HBP in the detection of non-dippers, which was similar to the previously reported test-retest reproducibility of repeated ABP monitoring in the diagnosis of non-dippers. Moderate to severe disturbance from ABP monitoring was reported by 18% of the participants and severe restriction of their daily activities by 9, vs. 3 and 1.5%, respectively for HBP (P < 0.001/ <0.01, for comparisons respectively). Nighttime BP monitoring and cuff discomfort were the main complaints for ABP (46 and 32%, respectively) and HBP (34 and 28%), whereas 89% reported more nighttime sleep disturbance by ABP than HBP (P < 0.001).ConclusionsHBP monitoring appears to be a reliable and well accepted by users alternative to ABP for the assessment of nocturnal BP and the detection of non-dippers.American Journal of Hypertension 2012; doi:10.1038/ajh.2012.82.     

Reproducibility of home and ambulatory blood pressure in children and adolescents

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the reproducibility of blood pressure measured at home (HBP) in comparison with ambulatory (ABP) and clinic blood pressure (CBP) in children and adolescents. PARTICIPANTS AND METHODS: Individuals aged 8-17 years who had been referred for elevated CBP were included. CBP was measured at two visits, HBP on 5 days and ABP for 24 h. A second session including all the above measurements was performed after 8 weeks. The reproducibility of CBP (second visit of each session), HBP (average of days 2-5 of each session) and ABP (average 24-h, awake and asleep) was quantified using test-retest correlations coefficients (r) and the standard deviation of differences (SDD) between repeated measurements. RESULTS: Sixteen individuals were included [mean age 13.3+/-2.9 (SD)] years, range 8-17, nine boys]. According to Task Force CBP criteria, eight were classified as hypertensives, three as high normal and five as normotensives. The reproducibility of HBP (systolic/diastolic r, 0.74/0.82, SDD 7.0/4.3) was superior to that of CBP (r, 0.63/0.80, SDD 10.4/6.3). However, ABP appeared to provide the most reproducible values (r, 0.87/0.84, SDD 5.5/4.3 for 24-h ABP; r, 0.85/0.76, SDD 5.9/5.0 for awake; r, 0.76/0.79, SDD 7.0/5.0 for asleep ABP). Aspects of the diurnal ABP variation were poorly reproducible (r, 0.62/0.14, SDD 6.8/5.5 for awake-asleep ABP difference; r, 0.55/0.26, SDD 0.07/0.11 for awake : asleep ratio). CONCLUSION: These data suggest that in children and adolescents home blood pressure measurements are more reproducible than clinic measurements. However, 24-h ambulatory monitoring appears to provide the most reproducible blood pressure values.     

Assessment of drug effects on blood pressure and pulse pressure using clinic,home and ambulatory measurements

This study investigated the differences in the effect of an angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitor (ACEI) compared with an angiotensin receptor blocker (ARB) on blood pressure (BP) and pulse pressure (PP) measured in the clinic (CBP and CPP, respectively), at home (HBP, HPP) and with ambulatory monitoring (ABP, APP). Twenty-seven hypertensive patients were randomised to receive lisinopril (20 mg) or losartan (50 mg) for 5 weeks, and were subsequently crossed-over to the alternative treatment for a second 5-week period. Measurements of CBP, 24-h ABP and 5-days HBP were performed before randomisation and at the end of each treatment period. All measurement methods showed that lisinopril was more effective than losartan in reducing BP. However, the difference between the two drugs was demonstrated with greater precision using HBP (P<0.001) than 24-h ABP (P<0.01), whereas the poorest precision for demonstrating this difference was provided by CBP (P<0.05). Lisinopril was also found more effective than losartan in reducing HPP (P=0.01) and 24-h APP (P=0.03) whereas no such a difference was detected using measurements of CPP. It was concluded that the antihypertensive drugs may differ in their effects not only on BP, but also on PP. HBP monitoring appears to be as reliable as 24-h ABP monitoring in detecting differences in the effect of drugs on both BP and PP. Clinic measurements seem to be the least reliable method, particularly in the detection of differences in PP.     

The bedtime administration of doxazosin controls morning hypertension and albuminuria in patients with type-2 diabetes: evaluation using home-based blood pressure measurements

The control of high blood pressure (BP) after awakening in the morning (morning hypertension) as determined by home BP (HBP), as well as BP control throughout the day, may prevent diabetic vascular complications. We examined the effect of an alpha-adrenergic blocker (doxazosin) on BP measurements taken by HBP after awakening and during clinic visits (CBP) in 50 patients with type-2 diabetes and morning hypertension. We evaluated the urinary albumin excretion rate as an indicator of nephropathy. Doxazosin was taken orally once at bedtime for 1 to 3 months. The mean (+/- SD) dose was 2.9 +/- 2.1 mg/day (1 to 8 mg/day). The BP was measured monthly at the clinic during the day and at home after awakening in the morning. In this short-term trial (2.8 +/- 0.4 months), the systolic HBP decreased significantly from 164 +/- 17 mmHg before treatment to 146 +/- 19 mmHg after treatment, and the diastolic HBP decreased significantly from 85 +/- 14 mmHg before treatment to 80 +/- 9 mmHg after treatment. The systolic, but not the diastolic CBP, decreased significantly after treatment. There was no significant difference in the systolic or diastolic values between the HBP and the CBP after treatment. The percentage change in the systolic HBP after treatment was three times greater than for the systolic CBP. The median (interquartile) urinary albumin excretion rate decreased significantly (P < 0.001) from 62 (25-203) mg/g creatinine before treatment to 19 (9-76) mg/g creatinine after treatment. On multiple regression analysis, the decrease in the systolic HBP with treatment positively correlated with the reduction in urinary excretion of albumin. The control of morning hypertension reduced the albuminuria found in both untreated and treated hypertensive patients with type-2 diabetes. Bedtime administration of doxazosin appears to be safe and effective in reducing morning hypertension as measured by HBP. This finding also demonstrates that HBP taken in the morning has a stronger predictive power for the albuminuria level than does CBP.     

Effects of Nighttime Alcohol Intake on Evening and Next Morning Home Blood Pressure in Japanese Normotensives

Home blood pressure (HBP) is usually measured in the morning and evening, but the evening HBP tends to be influenced by an individual's behavior pattern, such as bathing and drinking, which are often seen in the Japanese. In this study, in order to elucidate the influence of nighttime drinking on the evening and next morning HBP and heart rate (HR), HBP measurement was performed in Japanese normotensives under conditions in which the influence of bathing was minimized. Among 700 registered volunteers, 245 normotensives (189 male, 56 female, mean age; 35.8 ± 0.5 years old) whose data consisted of a combination of drinking and non-drinking on workdays were selected. A semi-automatic device was lent to all participants, and they were asked to perform triplicate morning and evening measurements on seven consecutive days between October 16, 2002, and November 13, 2002. The differences in evening HBP and HR between the drinking and non-drinking days were calculated, as were the differences in the next morning HBP and HR. Only data of evening HBP measured at least 30 min after bathing were accepted. Evening SBP and DBP on drinking days were significantly lower (2.5 ± 0.5 mmHg, 3.1 ± 0.5 mmHg) than those on non-drinking days. On the other hand, evening HR on drinking days was significantly higher (7.7 ± 0.8 b.p.m.) than that on non-drinking days. Although there was no difference in morning SBP after days with and without drinking, morning DBP the day after drinking was slightly (0.8 ± 0.3 mmHg) but significantly lower than that the day after non-drinking. Morning HR the day after drinking was significantly higher (2.4 ± 0.4 b.p.m.) than that after non-drinking. Because nighttime drinking influenced the evening HBP even in normotensives, it was suggested that morning HBP could give more stable values than evening HBP in Japanese people.     

Weekly Variation of Home and Ambulatory Blood Pressure and Relation Between Arterial Stiffness and Blood Pressure Measurements in Community-Dwelling Hypertensives

Although blood pressure (BP) is a major determinant of pulse wave velocity (PWV), some treatments have independent effects on BP and arterial stiffness. Although both ambulatory BP (ABP) and self-measured BP at home (HBP) have become important measures for the diagnosis and management of hypertension, single day recordings may be insufficient for a proper diagnosis of hypertension or the evaluation of treatment efficacy. To evaluate weekly variations in BP using 7-day HBP and 7-day ABP monitoring and to determine the relation between arterial stiffness and BP measurements in community-dwelling patients with hypertension. We enrolled 68 community-dwelling hypertensive subjects in this study. Significant weekly variations in systolic blood pressure (SBP) and diastolic blood pressure (DBP) were found in the awake ABP data (p < .01, respectively), while no significant weekly variations in the asleep ABP or the morning and evening HBP data were observed. In untreated subjects, significant correlations were obtained between the brachial-ankle PWV and the average awake SBP, the average asleep SBP and the average SBP measured by HBP in the evening. In treated subjects, only the average SBP measured by HBP in the morning was significantly correlated with the baPWV. Differences in the weekly variations in BP were observed between HBP and ABP monitoring. In addition, the morning systolic HBP was not correlated with arterial stiffness in untreated subjectswith hypertension but was correlated in treated subjects. Relations between the morning HBP and arterial stiffness might be attributed to morning surges in BP and/or trough levels of antihypertensive drugs.     

Weekly variation of home and ambulatory blood pressure and relation between arterial stiffness and blood pressure measurements in community-dwelling hypertensives

Although blood pressure (BP) is a major determinant of pulse wave velocity (PWV), some treatments have independent effects on BP and arterial stiffness. Although both ambulatory BP (ABP) and self-measured BP at home (HBP) have become important measures for the diagnosis and management of hypertension, single day recordings may be insufficient for a proper diagnosis of hypertension or the evaluation of treatment efficacy. To evaluate weekly variations in BP using 7-day HBP and 7-day ABP monitoring and to determine the relation between arterial stiffness and BP measurements in community-dwelling patients with hypertension. We enrolled 68 community-dwelling hypertensive subjects in this study. Significant weekly variations in systolic blood pressure (SBP) and diastolic blood pressure (DBP) were found in the awake ABP data (p < .01, respectively), while no significant weekly variations in the asleep ABP or the morning and evening HBP data were observed. In untreated subjects, significant correlations were obtained between the brachial-ankle PWV and the average awake SBP, the average asleep SBP and the average SBP measured by HBP in the evening. In treated subjects, only the average SBP measured by HBP in the morning was significantly correlated with the baPWV. Differences in the weekly variations in BP were observed between HBP and ABP monitoring. In addition, the morning systolic HBP was not correlated with arterial stiffness in untreated subjects with hypertension but was correlated in treated subjects. Relations between the morning HBP and arterial stiffness might be attributed to morning surges in BP and/or trough levels of antihypertensive drugs.     

Effects of nighttime alcohol intake on evening and next morning home blood pressure in Japanese normotensives

Home blood pressure (HBP) is usually measured in the morning and evening, but the evening HBP tends to be influenced by an individual's behavior pattern, such as bathing and drinking, which are often seen in the Japanese. In this study, in order to elucidate the influence of nighttime drinking on the evening and next morning HBP and heart rate (HR), HBP measurement was performed in Japanese normotensives under conditions in which the influence of bathing was minimized. Among 700 registered volunteers, 245 normotensives (189 male, 56 female, mean age; 35.8 +/- 0.5 years old) whose data consisted of a combination of drinking and non-drinking on workdays were selected. A semi-automatic device was lent to all participants, and they were asked to perform triplicate morning and evening measurements on seven consecutive days between October 16, 2002, and November 13, 2002. The differences in evening HBP and HR between the drinking and non-drinking days were calculated, as were the differences in the next morning HBP and HR. Only data of evening HBP measured at least 30 min after bathing were accepted. Evening SBP and DBP on drinking days were significantly lower (2.5 +/- 0.5 mmHg, 3.1 +/- 0.5 mmHg) than those on non-drinking days. On the other hand, evening HR on drinking days was significantly higher (7.7 +/- 0.8 b.p.m.) than that on non-drinking days. Although there was no difference in morning SBP after days with and without drinking, morning DBP the day after drinking was slightly (0.8 +/- 0.3 mmHg) but significantly lower than that the day after non-drinking. Morning HR the day after drinking was significantly higher (2.4 +/- 0.4 b.p.m.) than that after non-drinking. Because nighttime drinking influenced the evening HBP even in normotensives, it was suggested that morning HBP could give more stable values than evening HBP in Japanese people.     

The Bedtime Administration of Doxazosin Controls Morning Hypertension and Albuminuria in Patients with Type-2 Diabetes: Evaluation Using Home-Based Blood Pressure Measurements

The control of high blood pressure (BP) after awakening in the morning (morning hypertension) as determined by home BP (HBP), as well as BP control throughout the day, may prevent diabetic vascular complications. We examined the effect of an α-adrenergic blocker (doxazosin) on BP measurements taken by HBP after awakening and during clinic visits (CBP) in 50 patients with type-2 diabetes and morning hypertension. We evaluated the urinary albumin excretion rate as an indicator of nephropathy. Doxazosin was taken orally once at bedtime for 1 to 3 months. The mean (± SD) dose was 2.9 ± 2.1 mg/day (1 to 8 mg/day). The BP was measured monthly at the clinic during the day and at home after awakening in the morning. In this short-term trial (2.8 ± 0.4 months), the systolic HBP decreased significantly from 164 ± 17 mmHg before treatment to 146 ± 19 mmHg after treatment, and the diastolic HBP decreased significantly from 85 ± 14 mmHg before treatment to 80 ± 9 mmHg after treatment. The systolic, but not the diastolic CBP, decreased significantly after treatment. There was no significant difference in the systolic or diastolic values between the HBP and the CBP after treatment. The percentage change in the systolic HBP after treatment was three times greater than for the systolic CBP. The median (interquartile) urinary albumin excretion rate decreased significantly (P < 0.001) from 62 (25–203) mg/g creatinine before treatment to 19 (9–76) mg/g creatinine after treatment. On multiple regression analysis, the decrease in the systolic HBP with treatment positively correlated with the reduction in urinary excretion of albumin. The control of morning hypertension reduced the albuminuria found in both untreated and treated hypertensive patients with type-2 diabetes. Bedtime administration of doxazosin appears to be safe and effective in reducing morning hypertension as measured by HBP. This finding also demonstrates that HBP taken in the morning has a stronger predictive power for the albuminuria level than does CBP.     

Hyperinsulinism induced with glucocorticoid--a study on using a perifusion system of isolated islets in rats (author's transl)

In order to elucidate the mechanism of hyperinsulinism following a treatment with glucocorticoid, insulin secretion induced with glucose or tolbutamide was investigated by a perifusion experiment on isolated islets of rats. The results are summarized as follows: 1. The fasting blood glucose level was significantly higher on the 2nd day (174.0 +/- 11.8 mg/dl) and 3rd day (179.6 +/- 9.5 mg/dl) in the glucocorticoid treated rats, than it was in the control rats (129.0 +/- 12.0 mg/dl). The serum insulin levels began to increase from the first day following the glucocorticoid treatment (17.2 +/- 1.3 microU/ml in the control rats, 27.6 +/- 2.1 microU/ml on the 1st day, 32.4 +/- 3.9 microU/ml on the 2nd day, and 34.5 +/- 1.4 microU/ml on the 3rd day). 2. The insulin content of the islets decreased with the glucocorticoid treatment (765.6 +/- 34.5 microU/islet in the control rat, 576.6 +/- 25.0 microU/islet on the 1st day, 629.2 +/- 36.9 microU/islet on the 2nd day, and 482.0 +/- 43.5 microU/islet on the 3rd day). 3. In the perifusion experiment, a biphasic pattern of insulin secretion was demonstrated with the stimulation of glucose in the control and glucocorticoid treated rats. A remarkable enhancement of insulin secretion was observed by the stimulation of 100 mg/dl glucose. The amount of insulin secretion at the first phase (up to 7 min. after the glucose stimulation) was 2.9 +/- 0.5 microU/islet on the 1st day, 2.7 +/- 0.3 microU/islet on the 2nd day and 3.8 +/- 0.1 microU/islet on the 3rd day; these amounts were high compared with that of 1.8 +/- 0.1 microU/islet in the control rat. The amount of insulin secretion at the second phase (8 to 60 min. after the glucose stimulation) was 28.5 +/- 2.5 microU/islet on the 1st day, 37.1 +/- 3.3 microU/islet on the 2nd day and 41.3 +/- 1.8 microU/islet on the 3rd day; these amounts were higher when compared with that of 24.7 +/- 0.7 microU/islet in the control rat. 4. The monophasic insulin secretion from isolated islets by the stimulation of tolbutamide was enhanced with the treatment of glucocorticoid. These results indicate that glucocorticoid directly enhances insulin secretion from the pancreatic islets at the physiological concentration of blood glucose, which seems to be an important factor in the occurrence of hyperinsulinemia associated with glucocorticoid therapy.     

C反应蛋白和前白蛋白在AECOPD中的临床意义

目的观察AECOPD患者血清C-反应蛋白(C-reactive protein,CRP)、及前白蛋白(preal-bumin,PA)的变化,探讨其与病情严重程度及预后的关系。方法监测152例AECOPD患者入院后第1、3、5、7天CRP和PA水平,根据患者的预后将患者分成死亡与非死亡组,根据住院日数以14日为界分为两组,结果死亡组及非死亡组第1、2天CRP水平差异无统计学意义(P>0.05),第3、5、7天死亡组患者CRP明显高于非死亡组,差异有统计学意义(P<0.05),死亡组PA在第5、7天明显低于非死亡组,差异有统计学意义(P<0.05),结论 AECOPD患者病情越重,CRP水平升高越明显,PA水平呈持续下降趋势。     

Changing relationship between home and office blood pressure with increasing age in children: the Arsakeion School study

BACKGROUND: Home blood pressure (HBP) monitoring is being used in children. However, there is no information on the relationship between HBP and office measurements (Office BP (OBP)) in this population. METHODS: This school-based study investigated the effect of age on the difference between HBP and OBP in 765 healthy subjects aged 6-18 years (mean age 12 +/- 3 (SD years)). HBP (3 days, 12 readings) and OBP (2 visits, 6 readings) were measured using electronic devices validated in children (Omron 705IT). RESULTS: Average OBP was slightly lower than HBP by 0.6+/- 7.0 mm Hg (95% confidence intervals (CI) 0.1, 1.1, P=0.01) systolic and 1+/- 6 mm Hg (95% CI 0.7, 1.6, P<0.0001) diastolic, whereas pulse rate was higher in the office by 7+/- 10 beats/min (95% CI 6.2, 7.6, P<0.0001). Age was significantly correlated with the OBP-HBP difference (r = 0.13/0.24 for systolic/diastolic, P< 0.001). In the younger children (6-12 years), both diastolic and systolic HBP were higher than OBP, whereas pulse rate was higher in the office. In older children and adolescents, the BP difference was eliminated whereas the pulse rate difference was reduced but remained significant. These changes with age were similar in boys and girls. CONCLUSIONS: In the pediatric population OBP appears to be higher than HBP. This difference is reduced with advancing age and eliminated after the age of 12 years. These data should be taken into account in the assessment of HBP in children and adolescents.