Laboratory-based blood pressure recovery is a predictor of ambulatory blood pressure

The recovery phase of the stress response is an individual difference characteristic that may predict cardiovascular risk. The purpose of this study was to examine whether laboratory-based blood pressure (BP) recovery predicts ambulatory BP (ABP). One hundred and eighty-two participants underwent a standard laboratory stress protocol, involving a 20-min baseline rest period, and four stressors presented in a counterbalanced order, each followed by a 10-min recovery period. Participants also wore an ABP monitor for 24 h during a typical workday. Hierarchical regression analyses showed that BP recovery accounted for significant additional variance for daytime SBP (p < 0.001), nighttime SBP (p < 0.001), daytime DBP (p < 0.001), and nighttime DBP (p < 0.001), after controlling for baseline and reactivity BP. Results suggest that persistence of the BP response following stress may be a more salient characteristic of the stress response in understanding its potential impact on longer term cardiovascular regulation.