Keep a close eye on your blood pressure with at-home checkers
Health Watch by Amanda Perrone
The North Jefferson News
Blood pressure refers to the force exerted by circulating blood on the walls of blood vessels and constitutes one of the principal vital signs.
Optimal blood pressure is less than 120/80. High-normal blood pressure is 130-139/80-89. Classification of hypertension begins at greater than 140/90. The top number is called systolic blood pressure and represents the pressure an artery feels when the left ventricle of the heart contracts. It’s called systolic because the act of the left ventricle contracting is known as systole.
The bottom number is called diastolic blood pressure and it represents the resting pressure that the blood exerts between heart pumps. This resting and filling time in the heart is called diastole.
If you have high blood pressure, chances are you don’t even know it. Elevated blood pressure is most often a silent disease. It doesn’t affect the way you feel or act, but it is most definitely a disease that warrants treatment. Everyone can benefit from regular blood pressure screening.
However, it is especially important to monitor your blood pressure at home if you are taking medications for your blood pressure, have coronary heart disease, kidney disease or diabetes. Recording these numbers and taking them with you to your next doctor’s appointment can really help your physician get a continuous picture of your blood pressure and how your medications are helping if you have already been put on medication.
Home monitoring will also help your physician because many people suffer from white coat syndrome, which is just a fancy way of saying your body reacts to the doctors or nurses who are taking your blood pressure. Whether you think you are afraid or not, your body sees the situation as a threat and activates its defenses, causing your blood pressure to increase temporarily.
There are a few options for monitoring the blood pressure at home without having a trained nurse or other health professional visit each day. Currently available are electronic blood pressure monitors that can be purchased at pharmacies and other stores. Most of the monitors use an upper arm cuff. Some monitors are available where the cuff is placed on your wrist.
There are many features to sort through when purchasing an at-home blood pressure monitor. The following options are available:
• Automatic, one-touch devices versus manual pumping devices
• Memory to recall previous readings in order to print out and/or show the doctor
• Pulse measurement
• Battery versus AC adapter powered
• Dual languages
• Dual user features so you and another family member can individually keep track of your readings
• Carrying cases
• Warranty
• Large versus small displays
If you have an at-home blood pressure monitor or choose to purchase one, you should take it to your doctor or another health care professional to check its accuracy.
There are certain steps that need to be followed to get an accurate blood pressure reading:
• Avoid tobacco, alcohol, and caffeine within 30 minutes of taking your blood pressure
• Sit down and rest for about five minutes before taking your blood pressure
• Keep both feet planted on the ground
• Rest your arm approximately at the level of your heart, on a table or desk
• Wrap the cuff tightly around your arm with enough room to be able to squeeze your finger underneath it- it should not be too tight or too loose
• The bottom of the cuff should be about one inch above the crease in your elbow
• If you choose to take another reading, allow at least a minute of rest between each reading
• Take your blood pressure at the same time each day and record the time
As you begin collecting and recording your blood pressure, you may notice patterns based on what is going on in your life and/or what time of day it is. There are many factors that affect your blood pressure both continuously and temporarily:
• Age: as you get older, your blood pressure typically increases
• Gender: after puberty, females usually have lower blood pressure than males; but after menopause this is usually reversed
• It’s higher in late afternoon and/or early evening and lower in the early morning
• Blood pressure is higher in obese persons
• More activity increases your blood pressure at the time of exercise; it should return to normal within about five minutes
• Blood pressure quickly rises with fear, anger and pain
• Continual stress causes blood pressure to increase
Remember to take the record of blood pressure readings with you to the doctor. Taking an active role in your health care with blood pressure monitoring helps your primary care physician take better care of you.
Amanda Perrone is a Pharm-D candidate at Samford University’s McWhorter School of Pharmacy. Contact The Pharmacy at Mt. Olive at 631-1201.