Health experts estimate that 30 percent of people don't get an accurate blood pressure reading at the doctor's office. Some doctors have found more accurate readings by giving patients a cuff to wear at home for 24 hours, Renee Tessman reports.
At his office , more than 1,000 patients have had 24 hour blood pressure monitoring. It's being studied by Dr. Michael Cummings and Dr. David Ingham who believe simple doctor office blood pressure checks aren't good enough.
Some people have white coat hypertension, meaning their blood pressure spikes when at the doctor's office. Dr. Cummings and Dr. Ingham say getting an average blood pressure is a much better predictor of heart attack and stroke risk, it has changed some patients' lives.
They've found out that 20% who didn't think they had high blood pressure, indeed had masked hypertension. That's what I was worried about, but it turns out the daytime average was 110/75, normal being lower than 135/85.