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Document Type

Article

Abstract

The reproducibility of systolic and diastolic blood pressure at rest and in response to standardized ergometric tests was evaluated by test-retest. Thirty-one medically eligible middle-aged men were tested on a bicycle ergometer at 300 and 600 kpm/min; repeat tests were done one week later.The correlation (r) between tests of systolic and diastolic pressure at rest and during exercise was in the range 0.57-0.89. Mean systolic and diastolic pressures during exercise were generally 1-4 mm Hg lower at retest. Decreases in resting systolic pressure of 1-6 mm Hg at retest were statistically significant in 2 of 3 comparisons. Resting diastolic pressure was unchanged. Standard Error of Measurement and Technical Error—measures of intra­individual variability—ranged from 4.0 to 10.0 mm Hg, being slightly less for diastolic than systolic both at rest and during exercise. Test reproducibility was similar at 300 and 600 kpm/min. These data confirm that systolic and diastolic blood pressure at rest and submaximal exercise are sufficiently stable characteristics of healthy middle-aged men to enable their use for longitudinal assessment of groups and individuals.

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