Assessment of the Relationship Between Ambient Temperature and Home Blood Pressure in Patients From a Web-Based Synchronous Telehealth Care Program: Retrospective Study

Abstract

Background Decreased ambient temperature significantly increases office blood pressure, but few studies have evaluated the effect of ambient temperature on home blood pressure. Objective We aimed to investigate the relationship between short-term ambient temperature exposure and home blood pressure. Methods We recruited patients with chronic cardiovascular diseases from a telehealth care program at a university-affiliated hospital. Blood pressure was measured at home by patients or their caregivers. We obtained hourly meteorological data for Taipei (temperature, relative humidity, and wind speed) for the same time period from the Central Weather Bureau, Taiwan. Results From 2009 to 2013, we enrolled a total of 253 patients. Mean patient age was 70.28 (SD 13.79) years, and 66.0% (167/253) of patients were male. We collected a total of 110,715 home blood pressure measurements. Ambient temperature had a negative linear effect on all 3 home blood pressure parameters after adjusting for demographic and clinical factors and antihypertensive agents. A 1°C decrease was associated with a 0.5492-mm Hg increase in mean blood pressure, a 0.6841-mm Hg increase in systolic blood pressure, and a 0.2709-mm Hg increase in diastolic blood pressure. This temperature effect on home blood pressure was less prominent in patients with diabetes or hypertension. Antihypertensive agents modified this negative effect of temperature on home blood pressure to some extent, and angiotensin receptor blockers had the most favorable results. Conclusions Short-term exposure to low ambient temperature significantly increased home blood pressure in patients with chronic cardiovascular diseases. Antihypertensive agents may modify this effect.

The Impact on Blood Pressure of a Short-Term Change in Indoor Temperature

“…Although the exact mechanism is unclear, a possible reason is that cold exposure could rapidly increase the sympathetic activity, while warm exposure could not rapidly decrease the sympathetic activity. 2,[9][10][11][12][13][14]…”

The Association Between Short-term Exposure to Ambient Air Pollution and Patient-Level Home Blood Pressure Among Patients With Chronic Cardiovascular Diseases in a Web-Based Synchronous Telehealth Care Program: Retrospective Study

“…The data distributions of the air pollutant concentrations are summarized in Table 1. The mean temperature, humidity, and wind speed had been reported previously [18].…”

“…The program was designed specifically to offer home care for chronic CVDs. We had previously described the details of this program [14][15][16][17][18]. Briefly, single-lead electrocardiography, BP, heart rate, and oxygen saturation were measured at home, daily and on demand, and the data were instantaneously transmitted to the NTUH Telehealth Center.…”

“…A total of 110,715 HBP measurements were carried out accordingly for these patients. The details of this patient population, including the per-patient and per-measurement demographics and clinical characteristics, have already been reported previously [18]. The data distributions of the air pollutant concentrations are summarized in Table 1.…”

Insights on home blood pressure monitoring in Asia: Expert perspectives from 10 countries/regions

“…A summary of the initiatives that are undertaken to support the use of HBPM in the countries/regions is provided in Table 2. 3,8,9,15,16,20,[30][31][32][33][34][35][36][37][38][39][40][41][42][43] The initiatives generally fall into three broad categories: HBPM re- HBP monitors, and provide guidance on how to use these devices (Table 2).…”