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2024 Author: Malcolm Clapton | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 03:44
Measuring blood pressure is easy, especially with modern blood pressure monitors. But if you do everything somehow, then there will be some results. Lifehacker explains how not to screw up with a simple procedure.
Which device to use
For independent measurements, it is better to buy an automatic tonometer (a device for measuring pressure), because fiddling with a stethoscope alone is inconvenient, the results will be incorrect.
Some automatic blood pressure monitors also show incorrect results.
Please note that the wrong cuff size may affect the measurement results. Therefore, before buying, measure the circumference of the part of the arm that the tonometer will grip.
So that the device does not get confused in the readings, buy a tonometer in pharmacies or specialized stores and do not try to save too much. Be sure to read the instructions before use (even after reading this article) and change the batteries in time.
How to measure pressure
Do not hurry. Sit for five minutes in a relaxed atmosphere, do not rush to the tonometer immediately after exercise. Do not smoke or drink coffee half an hour before the measurement.
Sit on a chair with your back straight. Don't cross your legs. They should be on the floor so that their knees do not rise high.
Roll up your sleeves, or better - take off your long-sleeved clothes so that you can easily put the cuff on your arm.
Place the hand on which you are taking the measurement on a flat surface so that the cuff of the tonometer is approximately at the level of the heart. Sometimes you have to put a pillow under your arm to do this.
Fit the cuff correctly. Its lower edge should be 2–2.5 cm above the elbow bend.
Secure the cuff so that 1–2 fingers can be inserted under it. The wires should go out from the inside of the elbow so that the sensitive elements of the tonometer record the pulse.
Make sure that all tubes are straight, not tangled or kinked. It's not difficult, you just need to sit like this:
Run the program so that the tonometer fills the cuff with air, or inflate it yourself (depending on which model you bought). Wait for the device to release air, or open the valve and release the air yourself.
Record the readings of the tonometer and after a couple of minutes repeat the measurement on the other hand.
How to measure blood pressure with a stethoscope
The method in which a person listens to heart sounds requires some experience and habit. The first time it is difficult to hear everything and at the same time notice the values shown by the tonometer arrow. It is even more difficult to measure pressure for yourself. Therefore, if you decide to use a stethoscope, practice properly.
- The person should sit as straight as when measuring pressure with an automatic tonometer, the cuff is applied to the same place.
- In the fossa of the elbow bend or slightly higher, in the place where the pulse is best heard, you need to position and slightly press the membrane of the stethophonendoscope.
- Inflate the cuff and at the same time listen for the pulse while looking at the arrow of the tonometer. At some point, the pulse will disappear - it will not be heard. After that, you need to pump up the cuff so that the tonometer needle rises another 20–30 mm Hg. Art.
- Open the valve of the pear slightly so that the tonometer arrow slowly crawls down. Slowly - this is 2-3 mm Hg. Art. per second.
- Listen carefully when the heartbeat sounds again in the stethoscope. Remember the value that the arrow showed at that moment. This is systolic, that is, "upper" pressure.
- Then you need to wait for the moment when the sounds disappear again. The number that the arrow will point to at this moment is the diastolic, "lower" pressure.
Pressure above 140/90 is high, below 90/60 is low. To understand what is normal for you and what is not, measure your blood pressure every day at the same time and under the same conditions and record the readings. In this case, if you sense that something is wrong, you can determine if you have a pressure problem.
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How to measure pressure correctly?
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