title: The impact of nocturnal hypertension and nondipping status on left ventricular mass: a cohort study.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Ambulatory blood pressure monitoring provides a unique tool in the evaluation of night-time blood pressure (BP), having a critical role in the detection of a blunted nocturnal fall and of elevated night-time BP. Both nondipping status and nocturnal hypertension are associated with increased cardiovascular risk and target organ damage. The aim of our study was to investigate the impact of both nondipping status and nocturnal hypertension on left ventricular mass (LVM), assessed by means of echocardiography in a consecutive cohort of untreated participants.
  
  
  METHODS
  A total of 937 individuals were assessed by means of ambulatory blood pressure monitoring and echocardiography. Participants were divided into dippers and nondippers with or without systolic nocturnal hypertension (SNH). SNH was defined as night-time systolic blood pressure of 120 mmHg or more, and nondipping status was defined as an average reduction in systolic blood pressure at night less than 10% compared with the daytime BP.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Dippers and nondippers with SNH presented significantly higher values of left ventricular mass index compared with dippers and nondippers without SNH, respectively. Multiple regression analysis revealed that age (β=0.182, P<0.001), male gender (β=0.168, P<0.001), body mass index (β=0.080, P=0.011), and nocturnal SBP (β=0.174, P=0.037) were significant and independent determinants of LVM. Nondipping status was not found as an independent factor associated with LVM (P=0.136).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Nocturnal hypertension rather than nondipping status seems to be an independent factor associated with left ventricular mass index. The concomitant presence of both nondipping status and nocturnal hypertension is associated with higher LVM, indicating an enhanced cardiovascular risk.
authors.affiliation: Department of Clinical Therapeutics, Hypertensive Center, University of Athens, Athens, Greece.
authors.forename: Eleni
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Koroboki
authors.forename: Efstathios
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Manios
authors.forename: Fotios
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Michas
authors.forename: Charitini
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Vettou
authors.forename: Savvas
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Toumanidis
authors.forename: Constantinos
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Pamboukas
authors.forename: Iliana
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Tsouma
authors.forename: Nikolaos
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Zakopoulos
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D018660:Blood Pressure Monitoring, Ambulatory; D004452:Echocardiography; D005260:Female; D006352:Heart Ventricles / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging*; D006801:Humans; D006973:Hypertension / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009929:Organ Size