title: Taking blood pressure -- no laughing matter!
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Humour is used commonly to relax subjects when their blood pressure is being measured. However the short-term effect of laughter on blood pressure is not described.
  
  
  METHODS
  Sixteen normotensive volunteers had blood pressure measured using a validated automated oscillometric sphygmomanometric device (Omron 705 CP) as control and during three episodes of laughter while viewing a humorous sit-com video.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Blood pressure was stable in the control period. There was a significant rise (P<0.01) in systolic blood pressure from 115 mmHg (108-121, mean 95% confidence interval) to 127 mmHg (120-135) during laughing. The increase in diastolic pressure 71 (67-74) to 73 (69-77) mmHg was not significant.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Laughing has an acute effect on systolic blood pressure. Patients should not be encouraged to laugh when their blood pressure is being measured.
authors.affiliation: Department of Therapeutics and Hypertension Clinic, Trinity Centre for Health Sciences, St. James's Hospital, Dublin 8, Ireland.
authors.forename: Colm
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: McMahon
authors.forename: Azra
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Mahmud
authors.forename: John
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Feely
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001794:Blood Pressure / Q000502:physiology*; D001795:Blood Pressure Determination / Q000523:psychology* / Q000592:standards*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D006973:Hypertension / Q000175:diagnosis; D007845:Laughter / Q000502:physiology*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D015203:Reproducibility of Results