The relationship between 24-hour ambulatory blood pressures and laboratory measures of cardiovascular reactivity

Abstract

The relationship between 24-hour ambulatory blood pressures (ABP) and blood pressures (BP) obtained during laboratory stressors was examined. Thirty normotensives (equal males and females) underwent ABP monitoring on three occasions separated by a week. They also underwent a laboratory assessment which included standard stressors (i.e., mental arithmetic, cold pressor, orthostatic response, treadmill exercise). Correlational analyses found laboratory pressures to be significantly correlated with ambulatory pressures, with laboratory baseline BPs showing higher correlations to the ambulatory BPs than the BPs obtained during laboratory stressors. In addition, gender effects were examined. In the correlational analyses between ABPs and laboratory BPs, males and females did not differ significantly in the strength of the correlations. In terms of absolute values, males were found to have significantly higher SBP during ambulatory monitoring, random-zero recordings, calibration readings, and during baselines of the laboratory assessment. There were no gender effects for these measures with respect to diastolic blood pressure or heart rate. There were also no gender effects on reactivity to laboratory stressors as measured by change scores. Exploratory analyses found no significant effect of history of familial hypertension on either the ABPs or the laboratory pressures.

Social support and the reactivity hypothesis: Conceptual issues in examining the efficacy of received support during acute psychological stress

“…The reactivity hypothesis assumes that lab-based stress is an index of how individuals respond to stress in their daily life (Pickering & Gerin, 1990). In basic reactivity research, there has been a number of studies examining this issue with mixed results (e.g., Cornish, Blanchard, & Jaccard, 1994; Light, Turner, Hinderliter, & Sherwood, 1993). However, Kamarck and colleagues (2003) have recently shown that adopting a multilevel approach that models daily threats and factors present in both laboratory and field assessments (e.g., posture, activity) results in better correspondence.…”

Reactivity as a Predictor of Subsequent Blood Pressure

“…[5][6][7][8][9][10][11] A number of these studies are difficult to interpret because they were either based solely on correlations, only examined absolute levels during reactivity, or did not control for relevant covariates. [12][13][14][15] There has been little research examining the effect of race and gender on the association between reactivity and subsequent ambulatory pressure, despite the fact that previous research has been fairly consistent in showing race as well as gender differences in reactivity and blood pressure measured at a single sitting. 16 -19 The goal of the present study was to investigate whether cardiovascular reactivity to mental stress predicted subsequent ambulatory blood pressure differently in race/gender subgroups.…”

Laboratory-based blood pressure recovery is a predictor of ambulatory blood pressure

“…Morales-Ballejo (1988) reported strong correlations between systolic and diastolic BP reactivity with systolic and diastolic ABP at work, when the stressor response was aggregated. Cornish, Blanchard & Jaccard (1994) found laboratory BP to be consistent predictors of ABP, although resting BP was superior to BP measured during the stress response. In contrast, Ironson et al (1989) found that although work ABP was correlated with laboratory-based resting BP, reactivity BP did not correlate significantly with work ABP.…”