ABSTRACT
Background: Maximum home systolic blood pressure (maximum SBP) has been reported as a parameter of blood pressure (BP) variability. We tested the hypothesis that maximum SBP is one of the risk factors of hypertensive target organ damage (TOD).
Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional study of 4,310 subjects with>1 cardiovascular risk factor. The subjects measured their home BP for 14 consecutive days. Mean and maximum SBPs were used as independent variables. As dependent variables, we used left ventricular mass index (LVMI), brachial-ankle pulse wave velocity (baPWV), maximum carotid intima-media thickness (CIMT), and urine albumin creatinine ratio (UACR).
Results: In a multiple regression analysis, the subjects' mean and maximum SBPs were significantly associated with the above TOD markers. Compared to mean SBP, maximum SBP demonstrated a significantly stronger association with CIMT (p<0.001).
Conclusion: Based on its clinical significance herein, measurement of maximum home SBP is warranted in addition to measurement of mean home SBP.
Acknowledgments
We thank the numerous study investigators, fellows, nurses, and research coordinators at each of the J-HOP study sites. We also thank Ms. Kimiyo Saito for the study coordination and data management, and Ms. Ayako Okura for editorial assistance.
Conflicts of interest
The authors report no conflicts of interest. The authors alone are responsible for the content and writing of the paper.