Unattended automated blood pressure measurement : a valuable tool for the physician

Abstract

Three main methods of blood pressure (BP) measurement are routinely used: office-based BP measures (OBPM), 24-hour ambulatory BP measures (ABPM), and home BP measures (HBPM). OBPM can lack precision, ABPM gives exhaustive information but is not comfortable, HBPM requires a device at home and the result is not immediate. The automated (unattended) office blood pressure measurement (AOBP) is a more recent method, simple to implement in the physician's office, permitting to largely avoid the white coat effect. The result is immediate and the readings are similar to those obtained by ABPM, the reference diagnostic method for hypertension. We describe the AOBP for practical application.