[The contribution of 24-hour ambulatory blood pressure monitoring to the treatment of hypertensive patients in teaching hospital in Nitra].

BACKGROUND: Twenty-four hours ambulatory blood pressure monitoring (ABPM) in patients with arterial hypertension is a recognized method for diagnostic of hypertension and for monitoring of the effects of antihypertensive treatment. The aim of our study was to evaluate the contribution of ABPM in clinical practise. METHODS AND RESULTS: Records of ABPM in hypertensive patients were evaluated retrospectively. Total of 37 patients aged 27-69 years with the newly diagnosed hypertension in the period of 1996-2001 were included in the study. The indications to ABPM, percent of dippers and no dippers diagnosed on the basis of diurnal index and the modification in antihypertensive treatment in no dippers were analysed. 1) ABPM was used for monitoring of the effect of antihypertensive therapy in 78%, for diagnosing borderline hypertension in 19% and of white coat hypertension in 3% cases; 2) 22 patients (59%) were diagnosed as no dippers; 3) Antihypertensive therapy was modified in 7 patients no dippers (20%). CONCLUSIONS: The contribution of ABPM is obvious, however at current conditions its broader application could increase the diagnostic and therapeutical quality of clinical decision making in hypertensive patients.