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Glite Dictionary
white-coat hypertension

white-coat hypertension

1 5.5
A temporary rise in blood pressure when a person is at the doctor's office
  • noun
  • /ˈwaɪt koʊt haɪˈpɛrˌtɛnʃən/
  • Specialized
translation icon : hipertensión de bata blanca

Examples

  • Some have suggested that an ABPM be reserved for detecting white-coat hypertension or when there is concern about resistant hypertension.

    Academic text (2016)

  • Many patients experience white-coat hypertension when they feel anxious during doctor visits, causing their blood pressure to rise temporarily.

  • Research indicates that white-coat hypertension affects around 20% of individuals, leading to misleading blood pressure readings in clinical settings.

  • If you notice your blood pressure spikes when meeting with your physician, you might be experiencing white-coat hypertension.

Synonyms

white coat hypertension
vswhite-coat hypertension
  • Specialized
4.8

A rise in blood pressure at the doctor's office caused by feeling nervous

is spelled with a hyphen but keeps the same clinical meaning

Surface Forms

white-coat hypertension singular
white-coat hypertensions plural

Morphology

white-coat + hypertension

The term transparently combines 'white-coat' (literally the coat worn by medical staff, signalling a clinical/doctor presence) with 'hypertension' (high blood pressure), so a learner who knows both constituents can infer it refers to high blood pressure occurring in medical settings. This construction is cross-linguistically common (e.g. Spanish 'hipertensión de bata blanca'), supporting predictability for a B1 learner.

Etymology

The term white-coat hypertension comes from the picture of a doctor in a white-coat making a patient feel nervous, so their hypertension, or 'high blood pressure', rises in the clinic. That's why the term means a 'temporary increase in blood pressure' when someone is near medical staff.