title: The circadian rhythm of arterial blood pressure in Alzheimer disease (AD) patients without hypertension.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  The circadian rhythm (CR) of arterial blood pressure (ABP) in Alzheimer disease (AD) patients was examined in a case-control clinical study.
  
  
  METHODS
  This study was constructed using the case-control method and investigates non-hypertensive AD patients, compared with normotensive controls from a primary care setting. Twenty-four-hour ABP was measured with an automatic oscillometric device and recorded every 30 min throughout the day and night. Extreme dipper, dipper, non-dipper and reverse-dipper patterns were defined as those individuals with > 20%, 10-20%, < 10% and no fall in nocturnal ABP relative to daytime values.
  
  
  RESULTS
  There were significant differences in ABP dipper status between cases and controls (cases - 16.15%, 60.00%, 17.70% and 6.15% vs controls - 3.19%, 31.9 2%, 42.02% and 22.88% for reverse dipper, non-dipper, dipper and extreme dipper, respectively, df = 3, χ(2) = 56.76, p < 0.001). Compared with normal controls, AD patients had significantly higher 24-h mean blood pressure, 24-h mean systolic blood pressure (SBP), night mean SBP, night mean pulse pressure (PP) and 24-h mean PP. There were no significant differences in 24-h mean diastolic blood pressure (DBP), daytime mean DBP or night-time mean DBP, and no significant differences in daytime mean SBP.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The circadian rhythm of ABP in AD patents differed from normal controls, perhaps from higher night SBP in AD patents.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurosurgery, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Sichuan, China.
authors.forename: Hai-Feng
authors.initials: HF
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.forename: Huang
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Chang-Quan
authors.forename: Chao
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: You
authors.forename: Zheng-Rong
authors.initials: ZR
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.forename: Wang
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Hui
authors.forename: Qing-Xiu
authors.initials: QX
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.forename: Huang
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Si-Qing
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000544:Alzheimer Disease / Q000150:complications / Q000503:physiopathology*; D062186:Arterial Pressure; D018660:Blood Pressure Monitoring, Ambulatory; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D002940:Circadian Rhythm; D003971:Diastole; D005260:Female; D006339:Heart Rate; D006801:Humans; D006973:Hypertension / Q000150:complications / Q000503:physiopathology*; D008297:Male; D013599:Systole