Cuffless blood pressure devices are becoming more commonplace, with an increasing number achieving regulatory clearance and being widely marketed to consumers and clinicians. However, peak medical bodies in American and Europe do not recommend adoption in clinical practice, pending improved validation and reliability. Consistent with this, a recent review by our group highlighted the poor quality, limited completeness, non-independence and presence of bias in many cuffless validation studies. This presentation will provide an overview of available standards and best practices for validating cuffless blood pressure devices, with a focus on supporting journal editors, reviewers, professional bodies and clinicians in assessing individual research studies, device validation status and the state of the art more broadly.

Cuffless blood pressure (BP) devices are becoming increasingly available to consumers. However, concerns remain regarding their accuracy and validation, and most major international guidelines have not yet incorporated cuffless BP measurements into routine clinical decision-making. The 2026 Korean Society of Hypertension guideline is the first international hypertension guideline to incorporate cuffless BP devices into clinical practice. As their use expands, understanding consumer and healthcare professional perspectives is important. We gathered perspectives of community members and general practitioners (GPs), with and without experience using cuffless BP devices, through interviews and surveys.
Interviews with 29 community members (mean age 61 ± 12.8 years, 55% female) found that three participants had used cuffless devices and described them as convenient and accurate; two had used them following medical advice. Overall, participants were willing to try cuffless devices if their accuracy could be demonstrated. Of 950 (48% female) community members surveyed, only 28 had previous experience with cuffless devices. Among them, cuffless BP measurement had similar acceptability to home and clinic measurement and was more acceptable than kiosk and 24-hour ambulatory monitoring. However, cuffless BP had the lowest overall trust among survey participants.
Interviews with 22 GPs (55% female) found uncertainty regarding the evidence supporting cuffless BP, with some GPs raising concerns about cost and access for people from lower socioeconomic backgrounds. In separate interviews with 14 patients (mean age 67 ± 7 years; 43% female) and two GPs, conducted as part of the NEXTGEN-BP trial process evaluation, found high acceptability among patients, who valued convenience, ease of use and minimal disruption to daily routines. Patients reported greater engagement with BP management and behaviour changes, while GPs valued the potential for more frequent BP readings and information on BP control. However, GPs preferred access to actual BP values, rather than the percentage of readings at target alone, to support patient-centred decision-making.
Overall, cuffless BP devices appear acceptable to users with experience, but trust in their accuracy remains limited among both consumers and GPs. Demonstrating accuracy and clinical validity, alongside consideration of accessibility and equity, will be important as their clinical use expands.

Cuffless blood pressure monitoring devices are those which do not use a conventional cuff to estimate blood pressure. These technologies are attracting increased interest from consumers, health professionals and industry and have the potential to lead to a paradigm shift in hypertension management. At present, most global expert organisations do not recommend the clinical use of cuffless blood pressure monitoring due to accuracy concerns and lack of evidence on clinical usefulness. The purpose of the cuffless blood pressure monitoring position statement of the Australian National Hypertension Taskforce is to provide recommendations specifically for the Australian context and in alignment to the National Hypertension Taskforce goals for improved BP detection and control. This presentation will provide a overview of progress on the position statement.

Cuffless blood pressure technologies are advancing rapidly, driven by consumer demand, commercial investment and regulatory clearances. Watches, rings, wristbands, smartphone applications and other devices now claim to detect hypertension or estimate blood pressure without conventional cuff inflation. These technologies could expand access to screening and long-term monitoring, reduce the burden of ambulatory measurement and generate clinically valuable information during sleep and daily life. However, adoption is substantially outpacing the supporting evidence. Important uncertainties remain regarding accuracy, calibration, independent validation, diagnostic performance, data interpretation, clinical usefulness and integration into healthcare. Regulatory clearance should not be equated with validation against international standards or readiness for clinical use.
Established in 2026 and co-chaired by Professor Alta Schutte and Dr Dean Picone, Cuffless BP Connect is an independent international initiative created to address these challenges. Its remit encompasses wearable and non-wearable cuffless devices intended for blood pressure screening, monitoring or clinical application. The organisation brings together experts in hypertension, blood pressure measurement, cardiovascular physiology, device validation, clinical research and implementation across Australia, Asia, Europe and America.
This presentation will introduce the organisation’s purpose, structure and initial program of work. Priorities include developing an authoritative roadmap for cuffless blood pressure research and implementation; supporting independent and transparent validation; defining clinically meaningful and standardised reporting requirements; clarifying regulatory and evidence expectations; and promoting studies that determine whether cuffless-guided care improves diagnosis, treatment and cardiovascular outcomes. Cuffless BP Connect has a publicly accessible website with the intention to provide balanced information for consumers, clinicians, researchers and technology developers, including devices available, and practical resources.
By connecting stakeholders while maintaining scientific independence, Cuffless BP Connect aims to help ensure that innovation is translated into trustworthy measurement, appropriate clinical use and improved hypertension detection and management. The initiative responds directly to the need for a central, credible platform capable of closing the widening gap between technological momentum and clinical evidence.