Measurement of blood pressure (BP) by a doctor in the clinic has limitations that may result in an unrepresentative measure of underlying BP which can impact on the appropriate assessment and management of high BP. Home BP monitoring is the self-measurement of BP in the home setting (usually in the morning and evening) over a defined period (e.g. 7 days) under the direction of a healthcare provider. When it may not be feasible to measure 24-h ambulatory BP, home BP may be offered as a method to diagnose and manage patients with high BP. Home BP has good reproducibility, is well tolerated, is relatively inexpensive and is superior to clinic BP for prognosis of cardiovascular morbidity and mortality. Home BP can be used in combination with clinic BP to identify 'white coat' and 'masked' hypertension. An average home BP of at least 135/85 mmHg is an appropriate threshold for the diagnosis of hypertension. Home BP may also offer the advantage of empowering patients with their BP management, with benefits including increased adherence to therapy and lower achieved BP levels. It is recommended that, when feasible, home BP should be considered for routine use in the clinical management of hypertension.

Item Type:	Refereed Article
Keywords:	blood pressure, blood pressure measurement guidelines, home blood pressure, hypertension, management, treatment
Research Division:	Biomedical and Clinical Sciences
Research Group:	Cardiovascular medicine and haematology
Research Field:	Cardiology (incl. cardiovascular diseases)
Objective Division:	Health
Objective Group:	Clinical health
Objective Field:	Clinical health not elsewhere classified
UTAS Author:	Sharman, JE (Professor James Sharman)
UTAS Author:	Howes, FS (Dr Faline Howes)
UTAS Author:	Nelson, MR (Professor Mark Nelson)
ID Code:	103166
Year Published:	2015
Web of Science® Times Cited:	50
Deposited By:	Menzies Institute for Medical Research
Deposited On:	2015-09-23
Last Modified:	2017-11-02
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