Automated Office Blood Pressure Readings Are Nearly Identical to Awake Ambulatory BPs

Awake ambulatory blood pressure (BP) measurement — by devices that repeatedly record BP during 24 hours — is considered to be more accurate than routine office BP measurement taken manually or by oscillometric devices with a clinician in the room. In contrast, automated office BP measurements — in which several readings are taken automatically during several minutes with a clinician absent from the room — might be as accurate as ambulatory BP monitoring. This meta-analysis included 31 studies in which automated office BP and routine office BP were compared. Most studies used BpTRU, Omron, or Watch BP Office devices for automated multiple-BP measurement in the office.

Researchers found essentially no difference in systolic BP readings between…