Key points from article :
Blood pressure fluctuations over time could be used to identify patients at greatest risk of heart attack and stroke.
Study analyzed over 8,000 patients with high blood pressure for 20+ years.
Those with high variability had a 16% high risk of cardiovascular events.
Over half of the events occurred in patients with well-controlled blood pressure under current guidelines.
Systolic pressure variability of 13mmHg or more over 5 years suggests significantly increased risk.
Amlodipine, a calcium channel blocker, may help reduce BP variability and risk.
More research needed to determine optimal method for measuring variability.
“..studying the possibilities of incorporating data from home monitoring into clinical decision-making," - Peter Sever, study co-author.
Research by ICL, published in the European Heart Journal.
