Blood pressure in middle-aged women: a comparison between office-, self-, and ambulatory recordings

A blood pressure screening was carried out in women aged 40-64 years in a geographically defined area in southern Sweden; the attendance was 72%. Middle-aged women classified as normotensives by standard criteria were found to differ from hypertensives also when blood pressure was recorded with non-invasive ambulatory technique; this was so when calculated for day, night, and 24 hours. The frequency of ambulatory blood pressure values > or = 140/90 mmHg was also significantly lower in normotensives than in hypertensives. The established way of diagnosing hypertension and normotension thus correlated well with the results of ambulatory monitoring in women. Furthermore, women had their highest blood pressure in the late afternoon and not in the mornings, as previously shown in men. This was so in all three groups of women (normotensives, borderline hypertensives, and hypertensives). This difference leaves room for speculation about different types of stress load during the day in men and women.