Impacts of Measurement Protocols on Blood Pressure Tracking From Childhood Into Adulthood

The best approach for blood pressure (BP) measurement in children remains controversial, specifically regarding the choice of Korotkoff phase 4 versus Korotkoff phase 5 for diastolic BP (DBP) and the use of automated devices. To examine the impacts of different BP measurement protocols on BP tracking from childhood into adulthood, we conducted a meta-analysis of 50 related studies published between 1970 and 2006 identified based on a systematic search of PubMed. These studies provided 617 data points (tracking correlation coefficient, our outcome variable) for systolic BP and 547 data points for DBP for our meta-analysis. The explanatory variables included the use of Korotkoff phase 4/Korotkoff phase 5, BP device, and number of BP measurements per visit. Analyses were adjusted for potential confounders, including sex, baseline age, follow-up length, publication year, and study country. Tracking correlation coefficients for DBP measured using Korotkoff phase 4 was higher than that of Korotkoff phase 5 by 0.035 but not significant. DBP tracking assessed by automated device was higher than that of Korotkoff phase 5 by 0.152 (P =0.024) and higher than the mercury manometer by 0.223 (P =0.005). BP tracking was slightly higher with multiple BP measurements per visit, but measurements of ≥3 times did not improve the tracking further compared with 2 measurements. Although policy-making bodies currently recommend the use of Korotkoff phase 5 to assess DBP in children, our metaregression analysis did not support the recommendation. In general, Korotkoff phase 4 seems to be different from Korotkoff phase 5, and automated device is a promising approach for BP assessment in childhood.