Blood Pressure Cuff Placement If the cuff is too small, it can add 2 to 10 points to your bp measurement. Be sure to roll up your sleeve for a blood pressure test and also let your doctor know if the cuff feels too tight around your arm.
Using a blood pressure cuff that's too large or too small can give you inaccurate blood pressure readings. Your doctor's office should have several sizes of cuffs to ensure an accurate blood pressure reading.
Acute meal ingestion, caffeine or nicotine use can all affect BP readings, leading to errors in measurement accuracy. If the patient has a full bladder, that can lead to an error in systolic BP of up to 33 mm Hg, and the white-coat effect can have an error of up to 26 mm Hg.
You should place it tight enough so that you can only slip two fingertips under the top edge of the cuff. Make sure your skin doesn't pinch when the cuff inflates.
Check for accuracy
“If the systolic blood pressure (the top number) on your cuff is within 10 points of the monitor, then it's generally accurate,” he says. Most home blood pressure machines last for about two or three years. After that, check it at your doctor's office annually to make sure it's still accurate.
Let the patient know how often to measure.
Patients should take two readings, one minute apart. Between readings, patients should not remove the cuff. Patients should measure their BP in the mornings and evenings.
A new study revealed that the majority of home blood pressure monitors dispense inaccurate readings. This is extremely upsetting because high blood pressure is the leading cause of death and disability worldwide.
Don't check your blood pressure too often.
Some people find that they become worried or stressed about small changes in their readings if they take them too often. Worrying can also raise your blood pressure in the short term, making your reading higher than it should be.
The resulting anxiety can elevate blood pressure 10 points or more.” Studies have shown that clinics rarely take two or more blood pressure readings, even though the ACC/AHA guidelines suggest that doing so could reduce the effects of WCH.
Blood pressure has a daily pattern. Usually, blood pressure starts to rise a few hours before a person wakes up. It continues to rise during the day, peaking in midday. Blood pressure typically drops in the late afternoon and evening.
Blood pressure varies throughout the day. Readings are often a little higher in the morning. Also, your blood pressure might be slightly lower at home than in a medical office. Contact your health care provider if you have any unusual increases in your blood pressure or if your blood pressure stays higher than usual.
It's ideal to measure your blood pressure twice a day for two weeks leading up to a doctor's appointment, or following a change in medication. At each sitting, measure your blood pressure three times, but discard the first reading as it tends to be inaccurate. Write down the average of the second and third reading.
Everyone's blood pressure rises and falls many times during the course of a single day, sometimes even within minutes. Many factors contribute to these changes, including physical activity, emotion, body position, diet (especially salt and alcohol intake), and sleep deprivation.
Anxiety and high blood pressure can sometimes go hand in hand. Anxiety may lead to high blood pressure, and high blood pressure may trigger feelings of anxiety. Doctors characterize anxiety as feelings of intense worry or fear. It causes many physical symptoms, including increased heart rate and shallow breathing.
“I advise people diagnosed with hypertension to check their blood pressure twice per day until they have it under control,” she says. “After that, it's fine to check it one to two times per week.”
Taking your blood pressure daily can be great way to monitor your health. If you're planning to start monitoring at home, it's important to be as accurate as possible. One of the best ways to get an accurate blood pressure reading is to measure at the same time each day.
Alcohol, Caffeine, and Tobacco
Consumption of alcohol, caffeine and tobacco cause your blood pressure to immediately rise. Avoid alcohol, caffeine and smoking at least 30 minutes before your blood pressure test to ensure an accurate measurement.
Incorrect patient positioning
Perhaps the most common mistake in blood pressure measurement is allowing patients to sit or lie with their arms hanging by their side, since when the upper arm is below the level of the right atrium, the readings will be too high.
Taking your blood pressure at home can help doctors see the trend. “But I caution patients not to take it every five minutes, which can happen if they are concerned about high readings. That becomes a bad cycle. Do it intermittently—once or twice a week,” she said.
(It's best to take your blood pressure from your left arm if you are right-handed. However, you can use the other arm if you have been told to do so by your healthcare provider.) Rest in a chair next to a table for 5 to 10 minutes. (Your left arm should rest comfortably at heart level.)
Blood pressure rises progressively during breath-holding, even width pre-oxygenation and hypocapnia. Using the clinically used technique of deep inspiratory breath-holds with air, Figures 1 and 2 show that blood pressure rose progressively in all subjects during breath-holding.
While both numbers in a blood pressure reading are essential for diagnosing and treating high blood pressure, doctors primarily focus on the top number, also known as systolic pressure.
Do not smoke, exercise or use caffeine for 30 minutes to an hour before the test. Such activities increase blood pressure and heart rate. Wear a short-sleeved shirt so that the blood pressure cuff can be placed more easily around your arm. Relax in a chair for at least five minutes before the test.
It's actually quite normal. A difference of more than 10 points, though, could suggest trouble. In younger people, side-to-side differences in blood pressure can occur when a muscle or something else compresses an artery supplying the arm, or by a structural problem that prevents smooth blood flow through an artery.