The Pharmaceutical Journal
Vol 275 No 7356 p8
2 July 2005

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Home monitoring of BP gets more patients to target

Getting patients to monitor their blood pressure at home nearly doubles the number reaching target levels, according to a Finnish general practice-based study.

The study randomised 269 hypertensive patients whose blood pressure was inadequately controlled to home monitoring twice a day for one week, every two months, or to routine BP measurement in the surgery.

Results, presented at the European Meeting on Hypertension in Milan last week, showed that 29 per cent of patients using home monitors achieved a target BP of <135/80mmHg after six months compared with 16 per cent of the control group (P=0.016). Systolic and pulse pressures decreased more in the home monitoring group, the researchers reported.

Fiona Reid, community pharmacist, Newbyres Medical Group, Edinburgh, said: “Home monitoring is useful to assess control of BP and many patients like to empower themselves. However we should adjust upwards by 12/7mmHg to compare with clinic readings [since home readings are known to be consistently lower than clinic readings] and patients should be made aware of this.”