The effect of clinical inertia on the management of blood pressure.

blood pressure assessed by ABPM and the average reading of systolic blood pressure assessed by the cardiovascular technician was 2.8 mmHg with a white lab coat, and –1.8 mmHg without a white lab coat (P<0.001). This suggests that blood pressure recordings are most erroneous when done by a physician, than by a nurse, and most closely match the gold standard of ABPM when done by a cardiovascular technician, and that wearing a white lab coat also exaggerates the effects of the white coat syndrome. Both the study I performed and the study in your journal demonstrate that when doctors measure blood pressure, the readings may be more erroneous than if measured by a nurse, a cardiovascular technician, or ABPM. Perhaps clinics should have blood pressure measured by allied healthcare professionals not wearing a white coat to reduce the risk of erroneous readings.