Assessment of Visit‐to‐Visit Blood Pressure Variability in Adults With Optimal Blood Pressure: A New Player in the Evaluation of Residual Cardiovascular Risk?

Abstract

Background There is a paucity of evidence regarding the association between visit‐to‐visit blood pressure variability and residual cardiovascular risk. We aimed to provide relevant evidence by determining whether high systolic blood pressure (SBP) variability in the optimal SBP levels still influences the risk of cardiovascular disease. Methods and Results We studied 7065 participants (aged 59.3±5.6 years; 44.3% men; and 82.9% White) in the ARIC (Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities) study with optimal SBP levels from visit 1 to visit 3. Visit‐to‐visit SBP variability was measured by variability independent of the mean in the primary analysis. The primary outcome was the major adverse cardiovascular event (MACE), defined as the first occurrence of all‐cause mortality, coronary heart disease, stroke, and heart failure. During a median follow‐up of 19.6 years, 2691 participants developed MACEs. After multivariable adjustment, the MACE risk was higher by 21% in participants with the highest SBP variability (variability independent of the mean quartile 4) compared with the lowest SBP variability participants (variability independent of the mean quartile 1) (hazard ratio, 1.21; 95% CI, 1.09–1.35). The restricted cubic spline showed that the hazard ratio for MACE was relatively linear, with a higher variability independent of the mean being associated with higher risk. These association were also found in the stratified analyses of participants with or without hypertension. Conclusions In adults with optimal SBP levels, higher visit‐to‐visit SBP variability was significantly associated with a higher risk of MACE regardless of whether they had hypertension. Therefore, it may be necessary to further focus on the visit‐to‐visit SBP variability even at the guideline‐recommended optimal blood pressure levels.

Targeting autonomic nervous system as a biomarker of well-ageing in the prevention of stroke

“…BPV predicts also CV events after a first stroke ( Dawson et al, 2000 ; Kakaletsis et al, 2022 ). Regardless of whether they had hypertension, higher visit-to-visit SBP variability was significantly associated with a higher risk of MACE ( Liu et al, 2022 ). Nighttime BPV was said to contribute to the prediction of CV events ( Palatini et al, 2014 ) while this may be related to OSA.…”

Association of blood pressure variability with target organ damage in older patients with essential hypertension

“…These findings may suggest that elevated BPV is associated with TOD but may not be causal. A recent study on adverse cardiovascular events, which had endpoints differing from those in our study but also focused on BPV, has noted that among adults with optimal SBP levels, regardless of whether they had hypertension, visit‐to‐visit SBP variability is significantly associated with the risk of MACE 21 . Therefore, visit‐to‐visit SBP variability may warrant further attention, even at the guideline‐recommended optimal blood pressure levels.…”

Relationship between visit-to-visit blood pressure variability and depressive mood in Korean primary care patients

“…Therefore, future investigations may be warranted to consider the effects of specific classes of antihypertensive medication on BPV. Furthermore, SBP variability has been linked to mortality [ 30 , 35 , 36 ] and cardiovascular diseases [ 35 , 37 , 38 ]. Therefore, SBP variability may serve as a valuable indicator of variations in morbidity and mortality compared with DBP variability.…”