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The effect of verbal instructions on blood pressure measurement
I Amigo1, V Cuesta, A Fernández
1Department of Psychology, Oviedo University, Spain.
Insights
Oral instructions significantly influenced blood pressure readings in both normotensive and hypertensive individuals. This highlights the impact of suggestion on blood pressure measurement and suggests the need for 24-hour monitoring.
Area of Science:
- Cardiology
- Psychophysiology
- Clinical Measurement
Background:
- Blood pressure and heart rate are critical physiological indicators.
- Accurate measurement is essential for diagnosis and treatment.
- External factors can influence physiological readings.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the effect of verbal suggestions on blood pressure and heart rate.
- To determine if oral instructions can alter blood pressure and heart rate fluctuations.
- To assess the impact of psychological suggestion on cardiovascular measurements.
Main Methods:
- 120 subjects (60 hypertensive, 60 normotensive) participated.
- Blood pressure and heart rate were measured before and after receiving specific oral instructions.
- Subjects were divided into groups, with some told their blood pressure would increase, decrease, or stay the same; a control group received no instructions.
Main Results:
- Systolic blood pressure increased when subjects were told it would increase.
- Systolic blood pressure decreased when subjects were told it would decrease.
- Even when told no change would occur, systolic blood pressure decreased, as it did in the control group, indicating suggestion's pervasive effect.
Conclusions:
- Oral instructions can be a significant source of variability in blood pressure assessment.
- The findings underscore the importance of controlling for psychological suggestion in clinical settings.
- 24-hour ambulatory blood pressure monitoring is recommended to mitigate suggestion-induced variations.
Aim:
To determine whether orally delivered instructions can modify the intensity and direction of blood pressure and heart rate fluctuation.
Methods:
The blood pressure of 120 subjects, 60 hypertensive and 60 normotensive, was measured before and after oral instructions. The normotensive subjects were selected from a sample of university students and the hypertensive patients were selected at a routine medical screening. Each sample of 60 subjects was randomly divided into four groups of 15. Each subject was left seated alone in a room for 5 min. The researcher then measured the subjects' blood pressure and heart rate. Following this, each group of normotensives and hypertensives was told that their blood pressure would diminish, or that it would not change or that it would increase. The control group was given no instructions. After 5 min the blood pressure and heart were measured again.
Results:
In the normotensive and hypertensive groups who were told that their blood pressure would increase, systolic blood pressure increased by 4.3 and 2.5 mmHg, respectively. In the groups who were told that their blood pressure would decrease, systolic pressure fell by 7.8 and 7.4 mmHg, respectively. Those who were told that no change would occur showed a systolic pressure decrease of 3.5 and 1.8 mmHg, respectively. In the control groups systolic blood pressure decreased by 5.6 and 4.2 mmHg, respectively.
Conclusions:
These results show that oral instructions are a source of variation in the assessment of blood pressure and emphasize the need for 24-h blood pressure monitoring to eliminate this type of variation.