Blood Pressure Measurement Health Article

Definition

Blood pressure measurement is the non-invasive measurement of the pressure exerted by the circulating blood on the walls of the body's arteries.

Purpose

The purpose of non-invasive blood pressure measurement is to detect any changes from normal values, which may indicate disease. Measurement is also performed to monitor the effectiveness of medication and other methods used to control elevated blood pressure.

Blood pressure should be routinely checked every one to two years and may be monitored more closely during illnesses that affect blood pressure or during medical treatments which may change blood pressure. Measurement can be taken as often as every few minutes.

Precautions

As there may be no prior knowledge of the patient's previous blood pressure for comparison, a wide range of normal values apply to patients of different ages. The inflated cuff can cause discomfort, and this should be taken into account when dealing with very ill patients. Patients with a history of sickle cell anemia should not have non-invasive blood pressure measurements made with a typical blood pressure cuff, because the sickling process can be initiated by the pressure on the arm. Blood pressure measurements should occur on a limb free of intravascular catheters and arterial venous fistulas (joined artery and vein) used for chronic dialysis.