Vaile JC, Stallard J, Al Ani M, Townend JN, Littler WA
Sleep and blood pressure: Baroreflex sensitivity in dippers and
non-dippers
16th Scientific Meeting of the International Society of Hypertension
ISH Abstract Book
(Jun) 16: 1996
Baroreflex sensitivity (BRS) increases during sleep, whereas arterial
blood pressure (BP) falls. Some hypertensive patients do not have a
nocturnal fall in BP. The objective of this study was to ascertain
whether altered BRS might account for this phenomenon. In a group of
consecutive untreated hypertensive patients undergoing 24 hour
ambulatory intra-arterial blood pressure (IABP) recording, 18 failed
to drop their mean BP during sleep by 10% of the waking pressure. Each
of these patients was matched for age and waking IABP with two
dippers . Spontaneous BRS was assessed throughout the 24 hour period
by off-line computer analysis of spontaneous variations in BP and R-R
interval. In both groups there was a significant increase in BRS
during sleep. There was no significant difference in spontaneous BRS
between dippers and non-dippers either awake or during sleep.
Comment: Changes
in BRS with sleep are unlikely to contribute to the non-dipping
phenomenon in essential hypertensives (Carmine Zoccali, M.D,
Reggio Calabria, Italy).
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16th Scientific Meeting of the International Society of Hypertension
H: Pathophysiology :
Sleep, sleep apnea
H: Exam and lab tests :
Ambulatory monitoring