Ambulatory blood pressure monitoring in childhood and adult obesity.

Body mass and body fat are known modulators of blood pressure (BP) measured by clinic sphygmomanometry. However, the ambulatory BP-monitoring characteristics unique to obesity have not been widely studied. We reviewed the literature on ambulatory BP monitoring for links between measures of body adiposity in lean and overweight children and adults and various BP measures obtained by ambulatory monitoring. Collectively, the findings suggest significant associations of adiposity with ambulatory BP and heart rate, sleep-related BP dipping, and the white-coat phenomenon.