What is ‘masked hypertension?’ Elizabeth Tracey reports

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If you’ve been told your blood pressure is normal you might feel there’s nothing to worry about, yet a new report by a federal task force suggests otherwise. Greg Prokopowicz, a blood pressure expert at Johns Hopkins, explains.

Prokopowicz: There’s a fair number of patients who have what we call ‘masked hypertension.’ So there are patients whose blood pressure in the clinic is normal, but if they were to check it at home they would find that it’s high, and this is a much more problematic group of patients to understand and treat appropriately.  :18

Prokopowicz says how many people have masked hypertension isn’t known.

Prokopowicz: We don’t really know exactly how common it is but what they found is half the people out there with high blood pressure will actually have normal readings in the clinic.  :09

Prokopowicz says this is a compelling argument for everyone to have the ability to monitor their own blood pressure at home. At Johns Hopkins, I’m Elizabeth Tracey.