FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
For More Information: Bob Schwadron; 212-468-3616; [email protected]
HOME BLOOD PRESSURE MONITORING ACHIEVES GOLD STANDARD
NEW YORK, NY -- Automated home blood pressure monitoring is
as accurate and efficient as the *gold standard* stethoscope and
sphygmomanometer in measuring blood pressure, a study in the current
American Journal of Hypertension shows.
*Home blood pressure monitoring has been limited by the
unreliability, cost and complexity of measuring instruments,* says Michael
Weber, MD, an editor of the American Journal of Hypertension. *This has
improved as manufacturers have introduced devices that provide reliable
readings and are simple to use.*
He noted that physicians are increasingly asking their patients to
take home blood pressure measurements to help determine if the patient
truly has high blood pressure.
*Home monitoring helps physicians determine the effectiveness of
antihypertensive medications and gives patients a concrete measure of
their blood pressure,* Dr. Weber says. *This is important because
hypertension is a symptomless disease and some patients do not take
their medications as prescribed.*
An ad hoc panel of experts from the American Society of
Hypertension (ASH) recently recommended that patients use home or
self-blood pressure monitoring devices, which have been validated for
accuracy in the physician's office, to help gain better control of their
blood pressure.
Nearly 50 million Americans have high blood pressure, called the
silent killer because it prematurely ages the body's arteries and can lead
to strokes, heart attacks and kidney failure, often without warning.
In the study published in the April issue of the American Journal
of Hypertension, Stergiou and colleagues from the Hypertension Center
at Sotiria Hospital, Athens, Greece, trained 46 hypertensive patients (27
men and 19 women) to measure their blood pressure with a stethoscope
and sphygmomanometer for two weeks followed by a second two week
period with a validated automated device.
Daytime ambulatory blood pressure monitoring, in which a small
non-invasive device worn by the person to automatically measure blood
pressure every few minutes, was used as a reference.
The authors of the study, *Home Self-Monitoring of Blood
Pressure,* found that the automated method and the stethoscope method
were equally effective in recording the correct values.
*This is of practical importance to both physician and patient,* Dr.
Weber explains. *Automated devices are inexpensive, costing as little as
$30. In most cases, the patient can obtain accurate and reproducible
blood pressure readings.
*This study should give physicians the confidence to urge their
patients to use validated automated instruments,* he continued. *The
readings will help diagnose hypertension, guide the physician in making
appropriate adjustments to therapy in order to achieve optimal blood
pressure results and improve patient compliance with antihypertensive
therapy.*
The ad hoc panel of experts from the American Society of
Hypertension cited four benefits of home monitoring using validated
automated devices in an article appearing in the January 1996 issue of
the American Journal of Hypertension.
The experts said home monitoring helps distinguish sustained
hypertension from *white coat* hypertension. Home monitoring can
assess the patient's response to antihypertensive medication. It may
improve patient compliance and it may reduce costs (through more
efficient treatment).
The panel also urged private and government health insurers to
reimburse hypertension patients for the purchase of home monitoring
blood pressure measuring devices. The panel's recommendations do not
necessarily represent the views of the American Society of
Hypertension or its members.
The American Society of Hypertension is the largest US
organization devoted exclusively to hypertension and related
cardiovascular diseases. ASH is committed to alerting physicians, allied
health professionals and the public about new medical options, facts,
research findings and treatment choices designed to reduce the risk of
cardiovascular disease.
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