ABSTRACT
Background Greater variability in blood pressure and the disappearance of circadian rhythm are frequently found in the very elderly with hypertension.Blood pressure variability may be closely related to the target organ damages.Objective To assess the relationship between nocturnal blood pressure fall(NBPF)and 24 h blood pressure variability(BPV)by using BP weighted standard deviation as a new index for computing 24 h BPV,and to verify the clinical value of this new marker in the very elderly with hypertension.Methods We analysed retrospectively 1441 ambulatory blood pressure(BP)recordings,and computed:①the standard deviation(SD)of 24 h BP directly from all individual readings;②weighted mean value of daytime and night-time SD(wSD);③the magnitude of nocturnal BP fall(NBPF).Left ventricular mass(n=345)and carotid intima-media thickness(n=216)were determined by echocardiography.Results The 24 h SD of BP was significantly greater than the 24 h wSD(P
ABSTRACT
80 years)in China is increasing.As a special type of hypertension,the hypertension in the very elderly has some specificities in pathogenesis,clinical manifestation,treatment and prognosis.The topic to effectively cure and prevent hypertension in the very elderly is increasingly emphasiced.This article presents an overview of recent progress in clinical characteristics,and treatment strategy related to hypertension in the very elderly.