UK Biobank Data Show Blood Pressure Variability Raises All-Cause Mortality Risk by 11% per SD Independent of Mean Pressure
An EASD-presented UK Biobank analysis of 57,611 adults found blood pressure variability independently associated with death and stroke. Risk was markedly amplified in diabetes. The observational data highlight a potential overlooked marker but require confirmation in interventional studies.
Routine incorporation of visit-to-visit variability into risk calculators could reclassify patients currently deemed low-risk by mean pressure alone. Next steps include prospective cohorts with ambulatory monitoring and trials testing whether pharmacologic or lifestyle interventions that reduce variability improve hard outcomes beyond mean-pressure lowering.
VITALIS: Within 36 months, at least two peer-reviewed cohort studies with ambulatory BP data will confirm that a 5 mmHg reduction in systolic variability lowers 5-year stroke incidence by ≥10% after mean BP adjustment.
Sources (3)
- [1]EASD 2024 Abstract: Blood Pressure Variability and Outcomes(https://www.easd.org/annual-meeting/2024)
- [2]UK Biobank Blood Pressure Phenotyping Protocol(https://www.ukbiobank.ac.uk/data-showcase)
- [3]Meta-analysis of Visit-to-Visit BP Variability, Hypertension 2022(https://www.ahajournals.org/doi/10.1161/HYPERTENSIONAHA.122.19234)