Skip Navigation

This Article
Right arrow Full Text Freely available
Right arrow FREE Full Text (PDF) Freely available
Right arrow Alert me when this article is cited
Right arrow Alert me if a correction is posted
Services
Right arrow Email this article to a friend
Right arrow Similar articles in this journal
Right arrow Similar articles in ISI Web of Science
Right arrow Similar articles in PubMed
Right arrow Alert me to new issues of the journal
Right arrow Add to My Personal Archive
Right arrow Download to citation manager
Right arrow Search for citing articles in:
ISI Web of Science (7)
Right arrowRequest Permissions
Right arrow Disclaimer
Google Scholar
Right arrow Articles by Chang, J. J.
Right arrow Articles by Shea, S.
Right arrow Search for Related Content
PubMed
Right arrow PubMed Citation
Right arrow Articles by Chang, J. J.
Right arrow Articles by Shea, S.
Social Bookmarking
Add to CiteULike   Add to Connotea   Add to Del.icio.us  
What's this?

Am J Epidemiol 2003; 158:1218-1226.
Copyright © 2003 by the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health

PRACTICE OF EPIDEMIOLOGY

Sources of Variability in Blood Pressure Measurement using the Dinamap PRO 100 Automated Oscillometric Device

Joseph J. Chang1, Daniel Rabinowitz2 and Steven Shea1,3 

1 Department of Medicine, College of Physicians and Surgeons, Columbia University, NY.
2 Department of Statistics, Columbia University, New York, NY.
3 Department of Epidemiology, Mailman School of Public Health, Columbia University, New York, NY.

The Dinamap automated oscillometric device (GE Medical Systems Information Technologies, Inc., Milwaukee, Wisconsin) for blood pressure measurement is widely employed in epidemiologic studies because it is easy to use and because it eliminates observer variability. In this study, the authors assessed the variability in observed blood pressures associated with use of the Dinamap monitor and estimated the contributions of various factors to that variability. In 60 volunteers (30 aged 23–35 years and 30 aged 54–82 years) from New York, New York, the authors obtained 30 simultaneous paired blood pressure measurements in both arms at 1-minute intervals, using three separate Dinamap PRO 100 devices allocated to arm and subject according to a balanced incomplete block design. Variability, defined as the between-arm difference in blood pressure measurements, was analyzed using a mixed-effects linear regression model. A total of 1,800 paired blood pressure measurements were obtained between September 2001 and June 2002. The mean ages of the two groups were 28.3 years (standard deviation, 4.0) and 71.7 years (standard deviation, 8.0). A diagnosis of hypertension was present in 53% of the older subjects and none of the younger subjects. Fifty percent of paired simultaneous blood pressure measurements obtained were in agreement within 4 mmHg for systolic blood pressure or within 3 mmHg for diastolic blood pressure. Residual variability, attributable to the intrinsic inaccuracy of the device, accounted for 64–82% of the total systolic and diastolic blood pressure variability. The majority of variability in blood pressure measurement was due to the device as used under the study conditions.

blood pressure; epidemiologic methods; equipment and supplies; observer variation; oscillometry; research design

Abbreviations: Abbreviation: MESA, Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis.


Add to CiteULike CiteULike   Add to Connotea Connotea   Add to Del.icio.us Del.icio.us    What's this?




Disclaimer:
Please note that abstracts for content published before 1996 were created through digital scanning and may therefore not exactly replicate the text of the original print issues. All efforts have been made to ensure accuracy, but the Publisher will not be held responsible for any remaining inaccuracies. If you require any further clarification, please contact our Customer Services Department.