Using a heating pad overnight may help people with a rare condition called supine hypertension, where blood pressure increases when lying down, especially during sleep.
This idea comes from a small new study presented at the American Heart Association’s Hypertension 2019 Scientific Sessions.
Supine hypertension is often seen in people with autonomic failure, a long-term condition that affects the part of the nervous system that controls automatic body functions like blood pressure and heart rate.
Around half of patients with autonomic failure also suffer from supine hypertension.
High blood pressure during the night can damage the heart and kidneys and cause the body to produce more urine, which can lead to drops in blood pressure when the person stands up in the morning.
The study involved 10 people with autonomic failure and supine hypertension. The average age was 76, and their average systolic blood pressure while lying down was 168 mm Hg, which is considered quite high.
Over two nights, participants used a medical-grade heating pad set to 100°F. On one night, the pad was heated and placed under the torso from 10 p.m. to 6 a.m., while on the other night, the same pad was used without heat. Researchers checked their blood pressure every two hours from 8 p.m. to 8 a.m.
The results were promising. The heated pad lowered the participants’ systolic blood pressure during sleep. The biggest drop was 30 mm Hg after four hours of heat therapy. However, the therapy did not reduce how much urine the participants made at night, nor did it improve the common issue of low blood pressure in the morning when standing up.
Dr. Luis E. Okamoto from Vanderbilt University Medical Center, who led the study, explained that heat may lower blood pressure by pulling more blood to the skin.
This effect might make heating pads a simple and drug-free option to treat nighttime high blood pressure in people with autonomic failure. But he also emphasized that more research is needed to see if this method is safe and effective over a longer period.
The study had some limits. It was small, with only 10 participants, and focused only on primary autonomic failure, which is a rare condition. All the participants were Caucasian, but researchers believe the results could apply to other groups as well.
This early research suggests that something as simple as a heating pad could offer relief to people with difficult-to-treat blood pressure problems. More studies are expected to follow.
Copyright © 2025 Knowridge Science Report. All rights reserved.
