Noninvasive, automatic 24-h ambulatory blood pressure monitoring in normotensive subjects

The reliability of noninvasive, automatic blood pressure monitoring is not yet clearly established. A 24-h ambulatory blood pressure profile was obtained in 9 healthy, normotensive subjects with an automatic, noninvasive device. The blood pressure profile showed the typical circadian pattern with lower systolic and diastolic values during sleep, although pulse pressure was fairly constant (about 40 mm Hg). The systolic blood pressure rose steeply in the early morning hours--before waking up. The results were compared with simultaneous hourly readings using the auscultatory method. There were no statistically significant differences between the automatic and auscultatory readings, 13 of the 18 mean values at different time points being within 2 mm Hg of each other. All the auscultatory means fell within the 95% confidence limits of those measured hourly by the automatic method. Although the automatic method seemed to be reliable compared with the auscultatory method, its sensitivity to motion artifacts is a disadvantage in a truly ambulatory setting.