Association of Blood Pressure Variability With Death and Discharge Destination Among Critically Ill Patients With and Without Stroke.

Background And Objectives: It is unclear whether blood pressure variability's (BPV) association with worse outcomes is unique to patients with stroke or a risk factor among all critically ill patients. We (1) determined whether BPV differed between patients with stroke and nonstroke patients, (2) examined BPV's associations with in-hospital death and favorable discharge destination in patients with stroke and nonstroke patients, and (3) assessed how minimum mean arterial pressure (MAP)-a correlate of illness severity and cerebral perfusion-affects these associations.

Methods: This is a retrospective analysis of adult intensive care unit patients hospitalized between 2001 and 2012 from the Medical Information Mart for Intensive Care III database.