Holter tensionnel (MAPA) in Paris: monitor your blood pressure at home

To confirm a diagnosis of hypertension, check whether a blood pressure treatment is working, and detect two patterns a single office reading can miss: white-coat hypertension, where blood pressure rises only from the stress of the consultation, and masked hypertension, where it's normal at the practice but raised at home. The cardiologist reads the full 24-hour profile, including the drop in blood pressure that should normally occur at night. This makes it particularly useful when home and consultation readings disagree, or when blood pressure remains hard to control despite treatment.

Through a cuff placed around your upper arm, connected to a small recorder worn on a belt or shoulder strap. The medical assistant fits it in a few minutes, choosing from four cuff sizes for an accurate, comfortable fit. Once fitted, the cuff inflates automatically about every 20 minutes by day and once an hour at night, recording each reading without you doing anything. You keep a short diary noting your activities and bedtime, which helps the cardiologist interpret the profile. The next day you return the device, and the cardiologist analyses the full 24-hour recording.

No, though you may feel a brief sensation of pressure each time the cuff inflates, particularly at night if it wakes you. There's no needle, no injection, nothing invasive: it simply measures blood pressure the same way a cuff would at the practice, just automatically and repeatedly over 24 hours. Choosing the right cuff size from our four available sizes keeps each measurement comfortable. Most patients tolerate it easily for a full day and night, and it doesn't stop you working, walking or sleeping.

Yes, and you're meant to: the night-time readings are one of the most valuable parts of this test, because blood pressure should normally dip while you sleep, and a missing dip can be clinically significant. The cuff inflates less often at night, usually once an hour, so most patients do sleep, even with an occasional brief wake-up. Just keep your arm relaxed and still during each measurement, day or night. Noting your bedtime and wake-up time in the diary helps the cardiologist correctly interpret the sleeping and waking segments of the recording.

Yes. It's designed to record your blood pressure during a normal day, so working, walking and light activity are not just allowed but useful: they show the cardiologist how your blood pressure responds to everyday demands. Just keep your arm relaxed and still for the few seconds each measurement takes, which you can do even at your desk or in a meeting. Avoid intense exercise or activities that would soak or dislodge the device, such as swimming, unless your cardiologist advises otherwise. A normal, representative day is what the test needs to capture.

Both measure your pressure outside the consulting room, but they work differently. Home monitoring relies on you taking readings yourself, usually morning and evening, with your own cuff. A Holter tensionnel is fitted here and measures automatically, roughly every 20 minutes day and night, without you doing anything, including your sleeping blood pressure, which home monitoring rarely captures. The cardiologist may use either depending on your situation: home monitoring for simple, repeated tracking, and this test when a complete 24-hour profile, including the night-time dip, is needed.

Both are worn over 24 hours or more, but they measure different things. The Holter tensionnel (MAPA) records blood pressure at regular intervals to diagnose or follow hypertension, while the Holter ECG records the heart's electrical activity continuously to detect rhythm disorders such as atrial fibrillation. The cardiologist prescribes this test when the question is about blood pressure, and a Holter ECG when it's about heart rhythm: see our Holter ECG page for that test in detail. The two aren't mutually exclusive; a patient can need one, the other, or both at different points.

Yes, and this is one of its main strengths. By measuring throughout a normal day and night, away from the consulting room, it lets the cardiologist unmask two common patterns: white-coat hypertension, raised only during the medical visit because of stress, and masked hypertension, which looks normal at the practice but is actually elevated in daily life. Both matter, since treating white-coat hypertension unnecessarily, or missing masked hypertension, can lead to the wrong decision. The full 24-hour profile gives the cardiologist context a single office reading can't.

Wear a loose top so the cuff can be fitted comfortably on your upper arm, and plan to keep it on, without removing it or showering, for the full 24 hours. You're given a short diary to note your activities, any symptoms, and your bedtime and wake-up time, which helps the cardiologist read the recording correctly. During each measurement, simply relax your arm and hold it still. No fasting or medication change is needed unless your cardiologist says otherwise.

A prescription from your doctor is generally required to carry out complementary examinations. If in doubt, our secretariat is available to advise you.

Use the online booking button on this page, or call the secretariat. Mention your reason, such as suspected hypertension, unstable blood pressure or a treatment check, so we plan the right appointment. Wear a loose top on the day of fitting, and remember it's worn continuously for 24 hours, can't get wet, and comes with a diary to fill in. Bring your medication list and any home blood pressure readings you have. New patients are welcome as part of a broader cardiovascular assessment.