Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2015 Oct;17(10):786-91.
doi: 10.1111/jch.12588. Epub 2015 Jun 4.

Inter-Arm Blood Pressure Difference in Hospitalized Elderly Patients Is Not Associated With Excess Mortality

Avraham Weiss  1   2 , Alon Grossman  2   3 , Yichayaou Beloosesky  1   2 , Nira Koren-Morag  2   4 , Hefziba Green  2   3 , Ehud Grossman  2   5
Affiliations

Inter-Arm Blood Pressure Difference in Hospitalized Elderly Patients Is Not Associated With Excess Mortality

Avraham Weiss et al. J Clin Hypertens (Greenwich). 2015 Oct.

Abstract

Inter-arm blood pressure difference (IAD) has been found to be associated with cardiovascular mortality. Its clinical significance and association with mortality in the elderly is not well defined. This study evaluated the association of IAD with mortality in a cohort of hospitalized elderly individuals. Blood pressure (BP) was measured simultaneously in both arms in elderly individuals (older than 65 years) hospitalized in a geriatric ward from October 2012 to July 2014. During the study period, 445 patients, mostly women (54.8%) with a mean age of 85±5 years, were recruited. Systolic and diastolic IAD were >10 mm Hg in 102 (22.9%) and 76 (17.1%) patients, respectively. Patients were followed for an average of 342±201 days. During follow-up, 102 patients (22.9%) died. Mortality was not associated with systolic or diastolic IAD. It is therefore questionable whether BP should be routinely measured in both arms in the elderly.

PubMed Disclaimer

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Kaplan–Meier survival curve by category of systolic (A) and diastolic (B) inter‐arm blood pressure difference (IAD).
See this image and copyright information in PMC

Comment in

References

    1. Clark CE, Campbell JL, Evans PH, Millward A. Prevalence and clinical implications of the inter‐arm blood pressure difference: a systematic review. J Hum Hypertens. 2006;20:923–931. - PubMed
    1. Lane D, Beevers M, Barnes N, et al. Inter‐arm differences in blood pressure: when are they clinically significant? J Hypertens. 2002;20:1089–1095. - PubMed
    1. Clark CE, Campbell JL, Powell RJ, Thompson JF. The inter‐arm blood pressure difference and peripheral vascular disease: cross‐sectional study. Fam Pract. 2007;24:420–426. - PubMed
    1. Clark CE, Taylor RS, Shore AC, Campbell JL. The difference in blood pressure readings between arms and survival: primary care cohort study. BMJ. 2012;344:e1327. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Clark CE, Taylor RS, Shore AC, et al. Association of a difference in systolic blood pressure between arms with vascular disease and mortality: a systematic review and meta‐analysis. Lancet. 2012;379:905–914. - PubMed

MeSH terms