HEALTH
DOCTORS AREshedding light on
what’s called ‘masked hypertension’- when a patient’s blood pressure
readings are normal at the doctor’s
surgery but increase at other times
of the day. It’s the reverse of ‘white-
coat hypertension’, which is when
patients experience a spike in their
blood pressure when they’re nervous
at the doctor’s.
A new study published in the
American Heart Association’s journal
Circulationfound alarming rates of
masked, or undetected, high blood
pressure in healthy adults who had
normal readings at the surgery. The
researchers monitored the blood
pressure of 888 participants around
the clock during daily activity.
When monitored, patients woreBY ALEXA ERICKSONUnmasking
Masked Hypertension
PHOTO: iSTOCKYou could still have high blood pressure even if
your readings are ‘normal’ at the doctor’s surgery