Open AccessVariability—The Drama of the Circulation
Author(s) -
Rubin Mario F.,
Brunelli Stephen M.,
Townsend Raymond R.
Publication year - 2010
Publication title -
the journal of clinical hypertension
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.909
H-Index - 67
eISSN - 1751-7176
pISSN - 1524-6175
DOI - 10.1111/j.1751-7176.2009.00262.x
Subject(s) - greenwich , medicine , drama , blood pressure , primary care , clinical significance , circulation (fluid dynamics) , vital signs , clinical practice , intensive care medicine , family medicine , surgery , literature , art , physics , environmental science , soil science , thermodynamics
J Clin Hypertens (Greenwich). The two most common vital signs, ie, pulse and blood pressure (BP), are obtained to seek guidance in clinical management of patients in virtually all primary care practices. Even a cursory glance at their values, whether it is within a person over time or between patients on a particular day, reflects an amazing degree of variability. In this brief editorial we provide a focused review of the assessment and the importance of variability in within‐patient heart rate and BP and conclude with a few thoughts about the discordance in significance attached to these ubiquitous clinical measures.