Ambulatory blood pressure monitoring in elderly patients with chronic atrial fibrillation: is it absolutely contraindicated or a useful tool in clinical practice and research?

Ambulatory blood pressure monitoring in elderly patients with chronic atrial fibrillation: is it absolutely contraindicated or a useful tool in clinical practice and research?

Por: Valter Giantin, Egle Perissinotto, Alessandro Franchin, Kareen Baccaglini, Francesca Attanasio, Monica Maselli, Giorgia Gross, Maria Luisa Corradin, Alessandra Tramontano y Enzo Manzato.  Hypertension Research (2013) 36, 889–894.

The aim of this study was to test whether ambulatory blood pressure monitoring (ABPM) in elderly patients with atrial fibrillation (AF) is as feasible and reliable as ABPM is in patients with normal sinus rhythm (SR). Studies of ABPM in the elderly remain limited, and the use of this method in patients with AF remains controversial. The Italian SIIA 2008 guidelines consider ABPM ‘absolutely contraindicated’ for AF patients. This study was conducted on 200 hospitalized patients aged greater than or equal to65 years (68% females; mean age 82.4±6.3 years): 100 patients with SR and 100 patients with permanent AF.  [Actualizado:  08 octubre de 2013].