Epidemiological study of blood pressure in domestic cats

Blood pressure was measured indirectly in 203 cats using an oscillometric technique in conjunction with a tail cuff. Systolic blood pressure was found to be log normally distributed across the population, while diastolic pressure was log log normally distributed. Blood pressure was found to rise with age (systolic, diastolic, mean arterial and pulse pressure were significantly higher in animals aged 11 years or over than in animals aged under 11 years) but this rise did not parallel an increase in plasma urea or creatinine. Cats with clinical renal disease did however have higher blood pressures than normal cats, as did cats with ocular change consistent with hypertensive retinopathy.