How to take your Blood Pressure

<body topmargin=0 leftmargin=0 marginheight=0 marginwidth=0> <table cellpadding=0 cellspacing=0 border=0><tr> <td valign="top" colspan=2 height=90 BGCOLOR="#808080" TEXT="#080000" background="044b8573.jpg"> <div> <FONT SIZE="5" COLOR="#FFFFFF" FACE="Arial" ><B>MEDI-MAIL</B></FONT><B>    </B><B> |     </B><A HREF="index.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="MEDIMAIL"><B>home</B></A></div> <div>                                                   </div> <div> </div> </td> </tr><tr> <td valign="top" width=210 BGCOLOR="#808080" TEXT="#080000" background="045d2083.jpg"> <div> <IMG SRC="0925e370.png" border=0 width="94" height="55" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></div> </td> <td valign="top" height=390 width="100%" BGCOLOR="#FFFFFF" TEXT="#080000" background="04605053.jpg"> <div> <I>How to take your Blood Pressure</I></div> <div> THINK you know what your blood pressure is? Think again. Your blood pressure can flip from normal to high and back again within as little as an hour.</div> <div> So if you rely — as most people do — on your doctor measuring it occasionally, the chances are you're not getting a true result. In fact, say some experts, such readings are pretty much worthless.</div> <div> 'Blood pressure changes all the time and this constant variation can have a bigger impact on blood pressure readings than a single med¬ication ever could,' says Professor Paul Pad¬field, chairman of the British Hypertension Society's (BHS) measurement working party.</div> <div> `You need to take an average of at least 20 readings to get near to a real idea of your blood pressure, but this is not practical to achieve by visits to the surgery,' he says.</div> <div> Why does it matter? Around 16 million people in this country have high blood pressure, also known as hypertension — which is classed as readings consistently over 140/90 — but a third of these people are unaware that they have a problem. High blood pressure is the main risk factor for strokes and a major risk factor for heart attacks, heart failure and kidney disease.</div> <div> Knowing your blood pressure is therefore vital, which is why a third of people with high blood pressure are monitoring it at home.</div> <div> But Mike Rich, executive director of the Blood Pressure Association, points out: `There are a lot of blood pressure machines available, however, often the public have no way of knowing if the machine they are using is accurate.'</div> <div> The BHS has a list of automatic home blood pressure monitoring kits which</div> <div> have been validated and approved — this is indicated on the box.</div> <div> So how good are home blood pressure monitors? We asked a vol-unteer to try the newest machines on the market.</div> <div> Learning support assistant Caroline Lashley, 47, from Streatham, South London, has previously had high blood pressure — 180/110. Now, thanks to reducing her salt intake and watching her weight, it is an average of 140/80 —borderline hypertension.</div> <div> Before Caroline tested the devices, her blood pressure was checked at a Bupa Wellness Centre using a mer¬cury monitor. Results showed she had an average blood pressure of 158/95 — higher than normal for her, but probably due to nerves.</div> <div> We asked her to rate the machines for ease of use, and Professor Avijit Lahiri, medical director of the British Cardiac Research Trust, to assess the results. Marks out of ten were allot¬ted based on their verdicts.</div> <bR> <bR> <div> SIT and rest for five minutes In a quiet room.</div> <div> KEEP your feet flat on the floor and your arm supported on a flat surface at the same level as the heart. This Is Important — if your arm is too low, the monitor could  overestimate your blood pressure; if your arm is too high, this could give a misleadingly low reading.</div> <div> DO YOUR tests at the same time each day, so that you are comparing like with like.</div> <div> DO NOT test after a big meal or within 30 minutes of having coffee or a cigarette, as this will give an overly high result.</div> <div> TO GET an initial idea of your blood pressure,take It twice in the morning and twice in the evening for seven days. Discard the first day's readings and take an average of the 24 remaining readings — that is your average blood pressure. `Then you can take the readings less often —maybe once a week — but your doctor or nurse will be able to advise you,' says Mike Rich.</div> <div> SEND your home monitor back to the manufacturer every one or two years to have it calibrated, to ensure it is accurate.</div> <div>  TO GET a free copy of the leaflet Measuring Your Blood Pressure At Home, call the Blood Pressure Association on 020 8772 4994.</div> <bR> <div> BP MOINTORS REVIEW:</div> <div> A&D Digital Blood Pressure Monitor</div> <div> UA 767 Plus 30 Cost: £41.41     Po,</div> <div> Available:</div> <div> BHS approved: Yes</div> <div> Reading: 154/92</div> <div> Patient's verdict: This looks basic, but it's easy to use. It has a coloured scale with an arrow to indicate if your reading is high or low. This has a memory for 30 readings and can give you an average of all the readings taken. The screen is a bit smaller than the others.</div> <div>      Doctor's verdict     able</div> <div> This seems a very accurate reading. Being  to calculate the average reading is useful, as this gives a good idea of the true pressure. It's reasonably priced and more reliable than some of the more expensive ones. Rating: 9/10</div> <bR> <div> Lloyds</div> <div> Pharmacy Fully</div> <div> Automatic Blood</div> <div> Pressure Monitor</div> <div> Cost: £14.99</div> <div> Available: In store or www.lloydspharmacy.com</div> <div> BHS approved: No</div> <div> Reading: 182/95</div> <div> Patient's verdict: The reading is higher than normal, which is worrying. The machine is straightforward to use — you put a cuff around your arm and press the start button. A few seconds later, you have your reading. There's a memory for storing your readings, but it fails to give any indication if your readings are high or not.</div> <div> Doctor's verdict: The device seems very inaccurate and hasn't been validated.</div> <div> Rating: 3/10</div> <bR> <div> Omron MIT Elite Plus digital blood pressure monitor with lntellisense technology</div> <div> Cost: £79.99 Available:</div> <div> Available:</div> <div> www.pharmacare-direct.co.uk or www.amazon.co.uk</div> <div> BHS approved: Yes, but not yet on the BHS list</div> <div> Reading: 167/101</div> <div> Patient's verdict: This looks sleek and would appeal to gadget-mad men. It comes with a cable which allows you to connect to your PC and download your results.</div> <div> A little heart flashes on screen if your results are high, but there's no indication just how high that might be. It can hold 90 readings. Doctor's verdict: I use Omron machines in my practice. While Caroline's results with this are a little off, this could be because everyone's levels rise and fall all the time. Being able to download your results on to a PC will appeal to some people.</div> <div> Rating: 7/10</div> <bR> </td> </tr></table></body>