Sep 13, 2023 07:00:00

Harvard medical student points out that ``measuring blood pressure while sitting is wrong''

A study has found that making decisions based on blood pressure measured while sitting in a chair, the so-called ``edge-sitting'' position, may miss the risk of cardiovascular disease.

High blood pressure while lying down linked to higher risk of heart health complications | American Heart Association

https://newsroom.heart.org/news/high-blood-pressure-while-lying-down-linked-to-higher-risk-of-heart-health-complications

Doctors have been measuring blood pressure all wrong, study explains

https://studyfinds.org/measuring-blood-pressure-wrong/

Dr. Duc Zhao, a fourth-year medical student at Harvard Medical School, and his colleagues analyzed data from a longitudinal study of 11,369 adults from four regions in the United States. We investigated blood pressure data.

The results showed that 16% of people who were not considered to have high blood pressure when sitting on their backs were diagnosed with high blood pressure when they were lying on their backs. For this reason, Dr. Zhao points out, ``If you only measure blood pressure while sitting on your back, or even while lying on your back, you may be missing the risk of cardiovascular disease.''

In addition, people who were diagnosed with high blood pressure while sitting on the edge or lying on their backs had a 1.6 times higher risk of developing

coronary heart disease , a 1.83 times higher risk of developing heart failure , and a higher risk of developing a stroke than those who were not diagnosed with high blood pressure. The risk was found to be 1.86 times higher, the overall risk of premature death was 1.43 times higher, and the risk of death from coronary heart disease was 2.18 times higher. People who are diagnosed with high blood pressure while sitting on the edge or on their backs, and those who are diagnosed with high blood pressure only while lying on their backs are at increased risk for these cardiovascular diseases.

Dr. Zhao said, ``The autonomic nervous system regulates blood pressure in various body positions, but when sitting or standing, gravity tends to cause blood to pool, making it difficult to properly regulate blood pressure.'' 'For people who are clear, it has been suggested that it is effective to measure blood pressure while lying on your back.'