What is 24-Hour Ambulatory Blood Pressure Monitoring?
24-hour Ambulatory Blood Pressure Monitoring (ABPM) involves your blood pressure being measured at regular time intervals over 24 hours as you move around, going about your normal daily activities. It uses a small digital blood pressure machine that is attached to a belt around your body and connected to a cuff around your upper arm. It is small enough that you can go about your normal daily life and even sleep with.
What are the benefits of the 24-hour ABPM?
Blood pressure measurements by the doctor conventionally only take place when you are in the clinic. These readings may not reflect your usual blood pressure as the act of having one’s blood pressure taken may cause stress to you, resulting in a falsely-elevated reading (‘white-coat’ hypertension). The infrequency of such clinic measurements may not give sufficient information on your blood pressure profile, especially if it has been difficult to control with medication. Home blood pressure monitoring while often useful, is also limited by how frequently you monitor it, the accuracy of home BP machines and user error.
24-hour ABPM overcomes these difficulties. By measuring your blood pressure at regular intervals over 24 hours, our doctor will be able to get a clear picture of how your blood pressure changes throughout the day.


The unique data provided by 24-hour ABPM includes:
Based on the above data, our doctor will be able to objectively and scientifically assess the following conditions and select the most appropriate treatment:
“White-coat” hypertension | When BP measurements are high in the doctor’s office but falls within the normal range when taken at home. |
Undiagnosed hypertension | This occurs when BP measurements taken in the doctor’s office and at home exceeds 140mmHg systolic (top reading) and 90mmHg diastolic (bottom reading). |
Resistant hypertension | When multiple anti-hypertensive medications fail to adequately control high blood pressure. |
Masked hypertension | When clinic BP measurements fall within an acceptable range, but the mean blood pressure is actually above the acceptable range. |
Nocturnal hypertension | When daytime BP measurements are in the ideal range but in the sub-optimal range at night. |
Hypotensive symptoms | When the patients experiences symptoms such as giddiness due to over-lowering of BP with hypertensive medications |
“White-coat” hypertension | When BP measurements are high in the doctor’s office but falls within the normal range when taken at home. |
Undiagnosed hypertension | This occurs when BP measurements taken in the doctor’s office and at home exceeds 140mmHg systolic (top reading) and 90mmHg diastolic (bottom reading). |
Resistant hypertension | When multiple anti-hypertensive medications fail to adequately control high blood pressure. |
Masked hypertension | When clinic BP measurements fall within an acceptable range, but the mean blood pressure is actually above the acceptable range. |
Nocturnal hypertension | When daytime BP measurements are in the ideal range but in the sub-optimal range at night. |
Hypotensive symptoms | When the patients experiences symptoms such as giddiness due to over-lowering of BP with hypertensive medications |

Who will benefit from this test?
- Avoids the unnecessary initiation of anti-hypertensive medications and its potential side effects
- To see how well your medications are working to provide smooth & optimal 24-hour BP control
- To see if your BP remains high at night when you are sleeping. If this is the case, your medications may need to be changed or adjusted
- Especially in patients who develop complications of hypertension (eg.heart failure, heart attack, kidney failure or stroke) despite being on anti-hypertensive medications.
How to prepare for the test
How is the test performed?
What do I need to do during the 24-hour BP monitoring?
- sit down, if possible
- keep the cuff at the same level as your heart
- keep your arm steady
How does the doctor use this test to manage my BP?
- 1Normal blood pressure profile
- 2Newly-diagnosed hypertension
- 3Resistant / Nocturnal hypertensive profile
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