O perfil circadiário de descida noturna da pressão arterial na MAPA é realmente importante na prática clínica diária?

Cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of morbidity and mortality worldwide and hypertension is one of its main risk factors. Measurement of blood pressure (BP) is central to the diagnosis, treatment and follow-up of hypertension, and so a reliable and accurate method of measuring BP is vital. The development of the first sphygmomanometers by Riva-Rocci and the standardization of Korotkoff’s auscultatory method in the early 20th century formed the basis of the techniques of office BP measurement, the importance of which in the Framingham studies contributed greatly to the widespread use of this valuable parameter in daily clinical practice. This technique, now over a hundred years old, is by far the most common both in clinical practice and in research, particularly epidemiological studies. The realization that BP is a hemodynamic variable influenced by multiple factors, including exertion, emotional state, food intake, smoking and weather conditions, confirmed by invasive intra-arterial BP measurements, led to a search for ways to monitor this variable non-invasively.