Should ambulatory blood pressure monitoring be mandatory for future studies in resistant hypertension

Abstract

Recent technologic advances rekindled interventional management of resistant hypertension, either by carotid baroreceptor activation or renal sympathetic denervation. Interventional techniques result in impressive falls in office blood pressure (BP); however, ambulatory BP reductions are rather modest. This disparity between office and ambulatory BP reductions is observed with antihypertensive drugs, but at a much lower degree. Available explanations are not convincing, therefore, we propose that sympathetic overactivity may partially explain this divergence. Further studies are needed to prove or disprove our hypothesis.