title: Age-related trend for blood pressure circadian rhythm in normotensive healthy subjects: estimates provided by the clinospectror method.
abstract: The present study investigates how blood pressure (BP) circadian rhythm (CR) changes in its rhythmic properties as a function of chronological age in normotensive healthy subjects (NHS). The age-related trend for BP CR was investigated via the Clinospectror method, a periodic-linear analysis of regression for rhythmic parameters. The study was performed on 437 NHS (219 males and 218 females, ranging in age from 1 year to 102 years), who were monitored in their 24-h BP via a noninvasive automated recorder. An age-related trend was detected for the three properties of BP CR, i.e., mesor (M), amplitude (A) and acrophase (cent). Such a trend was positive for M and A, and negative for cent. According to the clinospectrometric formula, the BP CR can be classified as a "dianaclinous rhythm", i.e., a rhythm which increases in its oscillatory level and extent with advancing years. The documented age-related trend for the rhythmic properties suggests that the biological clock which regulates the BP CR in human beings undergoes a resetting of its mechanisms of tonic, amplitude and phasic modulation as a function of chronological age. The readjustment of the pressure clock may be regarded as one of the physiological features which characterize the aging process in human beings.
authors.affiliation: Department of Clinical Sciences, Medical Therapy, University of Rome La Sapienza, Rome, Italy.
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Cugini
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: De Rosa
authors.forename: A M
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Pellegrino
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: De Laurentis
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Fontana
authors.forename: C M
authors.initials: CM
authors.lastname: Petrangeli
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Leone
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Cellitti
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Marsili
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Scardia
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Menghetti
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Tamura
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D001794:Blood Pressure / Q000502:physiology*; D001795:Blood Pressure Determination / Q000379:methods*; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D002940:Circadian Rhythm; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012016:Reference Values