Blood pressure monitor

Having high blood pressure can put you at risk of a heart attack or a stroke, so being able to monitor your blood pressure can have obvious advantages.

The only reliable ways to monitor your blood pressure are by visiting a doctor or a nurse, or alternatively having your own blood pressure monitor. These monitors can be used at any time and in any location and, if used correctly, they are accurate and have easy read displays.

The right type of blood pressure monitor

If you want to have your own blood pressure monitor you need a monitor that measures your upper arm blood pressure. This is sometimes described as measuring the blood pressure at heart level and it is more accurate than the monitors that fit around the wrist or the lower arm. The latter are often cheaper, but they may not give a true reading.

Blood pressure monitors have a sleeve or band that is fastened around the arm following which the band inflates prior to the evaluation part of the test.

Once a reading has been taken the band deflates and the results are be displayed on the device’s visual readout.

Most modern monitors will have a digital display and many will allow the user to generate a physical output and to store past results in the machine’s memory. This allows ongoing evaluation. A talking readout is also available on a number of these blood pressure monitors.

Blood pressure monitors come with instructions on their use and also with information aimed at increasing the awareness of why blood pressure can sometimes appear to be elevated in certain circumstances, e.g. due to tension, feeling anxious etc.