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Reliability and reproducibility of a new automatic ambulatory blood pressure recorder were tested on 31 subjects (18 normotensives and 13 hypertensives). Of 3688 recordings, 1424 measurements were cross-checked with a sphygmomanometer in standing or sitting position at the beginning and at the end of a twenty-four hour monitoring period. In the normotensive subjects cross-checkings were performed also during a treadmill exercise stress test. Analysis of variance did not indicate statistical differences between the two types of measurement (p>0.09 for systolic and p>0.62 for diastolic), and a significant linear correlation was found at rest (r = 0.99, p<0.001 for systolic and r=0.98, p>0.001 for diastolic pressure). During the effort test the device was unable to correctly measure blood pressure values after the first step. During the twenty-four hour monitoring period only 1.1 % of the preprogrammed measurements were lost for each subject. The recorder seems to be a suitable and reliable tool for automatic blood pressure monitoring. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To evaluate blood pressure reactivity in children and its changes in adolescents, the acute pressor response to a video-game stress test and the noninvasive ambulatory blood pressure monitoring were evaluated in 62 healthy children divided into three age groups. Basal blood pressure values were measured according to the NIH Task Force. With baseline measures and body mass index controlled for, analysis of covariance showed that the video game provoked significant and incremental cardiovascular reactivity across the games in adolescents when compared with the two other groups of children. The same group of children showed also a significantly higher systolic ambulatory pressure during the daytime, whereas no significant difference was observed by basal BP measurement. In conclusion an increased reactivity to external stimuli was observed in adolescents, and this pattern was strictly associated with a higher daily blood pressure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Presents a letter to the editor in response to an Italian multicentre study published in a 1987 issue which investigated the efficacy of subcutaneous low-dose heparin in preventing recurrence of myocardial infarction.