Fear of blood pressure cuff
Common Questions and Answers about Fear of blood pressure cuff
fear
AHA Recommendation:
The American Heart Association recommends an automatic, cuff-style, bicep (upper-arm) monitor. Wrist and finger monitors are not recommended because they yield less reliable readings.
1 mmHg (millimeter of mercury) is equivalent to approx. 0,75 cm of water (as the density of mercury is approx. 13 times as high as water). Blood has about the same density as water, so in other words, for each cm you keep your arm (wrist) below heart level, your blood pressure monitoring will increase with 0,75 mmHg systolic AND diastolic.
I went to a new shoulder doctor for a torn rotator cuff. The other docotr never took my blood pressure. The minute I saw that cuff, woshhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh, my blood pressure went to 200/104. The took it before I left it started to come down a little, but still up. I just think about getting it taken and it goes up. I try to think back what would cause this.
s funny that both you and flycaster have mentioned electronic cuffs are more accurate than the non-electronic versions because it seems that every time I do a search on electronic blood pressure cuffs and their accuracy, I receive similar results. For the electronic blood pressure cuff on the bicep, those tend to give a higher systolic rating sometimes while the wrist cuffs tend to be the least accurate out of all of the cuffs.
I am a student at Brown University in Providence, RI, USA doing a project on constant blood pressure monitoring. Instead of using a blood pressure cuff, you'd wear a patch or a bracelet-like device that would monitor your blood pressure 24/7 and you'd be able to track your measurements on your smartphone or computer.
Do you think such a device would help you monitor your condition better? What are some current problems people have with their blood pressure cuffs?
Dear Doctor,
I check my blood pressure whenever I sense the feeling of fear in my body and have white coat at the doctors and at home. Medication did not give me any relief. I had CBT from 2 therapists but I got more obsessed about my blood pressure as the focus of the theraphy was how reduce checking. The more I focused on my problem , the worse it got.
So I began checking less on my own but sometimes I gave in due to the compulsion being too strong.
Yesterday i tested my blood
It appears you take your blood pressure at home, if so make sure that your blood pressure cuff gives a similar reading to the cuff in your doctor's office. Electronic blood pressure cuffs need to be checked periodically, to ensure that they are giving an accurate reading. A malfunction BP unit can cause variations.
What is your heart rate when you BP is high, and what is the heart rate when BP is low?
I am concerned about the accuracy of typical blood pressure monitors that run $50-$100 at any drug store. I have one and I'm sure I"m taking my pressure correctly but sometimes it gives me weird readings, for example 77/41... and 1 minute later 118/74 (which is in line with my normal)... Then I'll get 111/51, etc. I would actually be willing to spend several hundred dollars if I could be assured of a professional accuracy but I'm not sure where to look.
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