Non-invasive 24-hr monitoring of high blood pressure in climacteric outpatients.
Blood pressure (BP) monitoring was carried out over a period of 24 hr in 28 hypertensive women selected among the outpatients attending the Menopause Clinic at Bologna University. Seven (7) of the women (mean age 50 +/- 1 yr) were in the pre-menopause, 7 had undergone a natural menopause at 6 to 36 mth previously (mean age 52 +/- 4 yr) and a further 7 had had a natural menopause 37-120 months previously (mean age 56 +/- 5 yr). The control group was made up of 7 women in late fertile age (mean age 47 +/- 1 yr). It was found that: high blood pressure was not confirmed in all patients; there was a significant increase in systolic and diastolic BP values in natural post-menopause subjects (P less than 0.01) temporarily related to ovarian failure, but BP reached a steady state in elderly women when a new hormonal balance is established; 24-hr monitoring made it possible to identify a group of climacteric outpatients at higher cardiovascular risk whose suitability for antihypertensive treatment could thus be assessed.
Istituto di Clinica Medica Generale e Terapia Medica S. Orsola Hospital, Bologna University, Italy.
A S
AS
Villecco
D
D
de Aloysio
G
G
Pilati
M
M
Mauloni
A
A
Roncuzzi
F
F
Bottiglioni
E
E
Pisi
D001794:Blood Pressure; D002940:Circadian Rhythm; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D006973:Hypertension / Q000503:physiopathology*; D008593:Menopause / Q000502:physiology*; D008875:Middle Aged; D008991:Monitoring, Physiologic