Home blood pressure monitoring in clinical practice: a review

Abstract

Home blood pressure monitoring is a convenient and inexpensive technique to monitor blood pressure in hypertensive patients. There are convincing data that home blood pressure monitoring is a good predictor of future cardiovascular risk, perhaps better than office blood pressure. Home blood pressure measurement can be standardized using validated instruments and systematic protocols; normative criteria have established home blood pressure >135/85 mm Hg as hypertensive. Home blood pressure monitoring has been shown to improve compliance and blood pressure control, and to reduce health care costs. Ongoing studies are evaluating management of hypertension based on home blood pressure readings compared with traditional office-based readings. Home blood pressure monitoring is particularly useful for evaluation of white coat hypertension and masked hypertension. In this article, we discuss the methodology for measuring blood pressure at home, its comparison to the other measurement techniques, the advantages and disadvantages, cost benefit analyses, and ongoing clinical trials to help define the role of home blood pressure monitoring in the clinical management of hypertension.