Abstract
There are 5 known Korotkoff sounds which occur during a standard blood pressure (BP) measurement cycle, the first 4 (K1 to K4) having specific acoustic signatures, and the fifth (K5) occurring where sound first becomes absent. The different Korotkoff sound proportions (KSPs) are not well understood. Using bespoke acoustic analysis technology, we compared KSPs (K1P, K2P, K3P, K4P) in normotensive men and women at different ages and described the effect of normalising the cuff deflation rate (CDR) to allow 60 heart beats (CDR 60 ) versus a standard 3mmHg/s (CDR 3mmHg ). At a CDR 3mmHg , men had a higher K2P (36% vs 26%, p=0.006) and lower K3P (27% vs 38%, p=0.002) than women. K3P significantly increased with age in both men (p<0.001) and women (p<0.004). CDR 60 caused a significant drop in K2P (p<0.001) and rise in K3P (p=0.019). These differences may reflect changes in vascular stiffness which may vary with gender, age and CDR. To our knowledge, this phenomenon has never been described before and requires further investigation.
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