Influence of circadian rhythm of blood pressure on carotid atherosclerosis in patients with hypertension

Objective To investigate the influence of circadian rhythm of blood pressure(BP) on carotid atherosclerosis in patients with hypertension. Methods The patients(n=103) diagnosed as primary hypertension were chosen from the Department of Internal Medicine of Affiliated Hospital of Hebei United University from Feb. 2012 to Oct. 2013. All patients were given 24-h ambulatory BP monitoring. The patients were divided into nondipper group(n=72) and dipper group(n=31) according to night BP decreasing rate. Common carotid intimamedia thickness(CA-IMT) and artery plaque were detected by using color Doppler ultrasound. Results CA-IMT increased [(1.01±0.16) mm vs.(0.91±0.17) mm,P0.05],and detection rate of artery plaque was higher in nondipper group compared with dipper group. The level of high sensitivity C-reactive protein(hs-CRP) was higher in non-dipper group compared with dipper group [(3.24±2.18) mg/L vs.(2.33±1.81) mg/L,P0.05],and CAIMT was positively correlated to hs-CRP. Conclusion Circadian rhythm of BP has an improving effect on the development of carotid atherosclerosis in patients with primary hypertension.