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Updated: Jun 8, 2026

Through-the-Wall Blood Sampling Method to Minimize Sleep Disruption in Clinical Settings
Published on: June 13, 2025
Blood pressure increases during a simulated night shift in persons at risk for hypertension
James A McCubbin1, June J Pilcher, D DeWayne Moore
1Department of Psychology, Clemson University, 319-B Brackett Hall, Clemson, SC 29634, USA. jmccubb@clemson.edu
Background:
Shift work with sleep disruption is a systemic stressor that may possibly be associated with blood pressure dysregulation and hypertension.
Purpose:
We hypothesize that rotation to a simulated night shift with sleep deprivation will produce blood pressure elevations in persons at risk for development of hypertension.
Method:
We examined the effects of a simulated night shift on resting blood pressure in 51 diurnal young adults without current hypertension. Resting blood pressure was monitored throughout a 24-h period of total sleep deprivation with sustained cognitive work. Twelve participants (23.5%) reported one or more parents with a diagnosis of hypertension. Ten participants were classified as prehypertensive by JNC-7 criteria. Only two prehypertensive subjects reported parental hypertension.
Results:
Results indicate that, as the night shift progressed, participants with a positive family history of hypertension showed significantly higher resting diastolic blood pressure than those with a negative family history of hypertension (p = 0.007). Prehypertensive participants showed elevated blood pressure throughout the study.
Conclusion:
These data suggest that rotation to a simulated night shift with sleep deprivation may contribute to blood pressure dysregulation in persons with a positive family history of hypertension.
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