Although these observations need to be confirmed prospectively, they suggest that auscultatory gaps may have prognostic relevance.

The auscultatory gap can be mistaken for the silence that occurs when the cuff pressure exceeds the systolic pressure.

There is evidence that auscultatory gaps are related to carotid atherosclerosis and to increased arterial stiffness in hypertensive patients, independent of age.

An auscultatory gap is the interval of pressure where Korotkoff sounds indicating true systolic pressure fade away and reappear at a lower pressure point during the manual measurement of blood pressure.

In general, the examiner can avoid being confused by an auscultatory gap by always inflating a blood pressure cuff to 20-40 mmHg higher than the pressure required to occlude the brachial pulse.