Blood Pressure

Not sure if this is the right forum for this, so apologies if it's not.

Do people know those machines that are usually in pharmacies - the ones that measure your weight, height, and blood pressure. Silly question but, how accurate are they?

I did it today and it said that my Blood Pressure is:
Maximum Systolic - 177 mmHg
Maximum Diastolic - 78 mmHG
Pulse rate - 81 per min

And underneath it it states that with regards to Systolic, anything above 160 is hypertension.

Basically my question is this; should I get myself checked out by a doctor, or are these machines not entirely accurate. I have recently been diagnosed with arrythmia so that may or may not have something to do with it.

I am not exactly asking for medical advice, more just curious if I should be worried about it.

I should probably add that I'm 22.

Odysseus

Not giving you medical advice but I would be going to my gp to be safe. Normal bp is considered to be 120-140 systolic over 90-70. I personally would not trust those machines but I must ask one of the pharamacists in work tomorrow how accurate they are. You know how to keep a track of you own pluse I presume. General rule if your concerned get yourself to the gp. Sorry if this doesn't answer your question.

Odysseus

Just found this link it may help you understand it www.vaughns-1-pagers.com/medicine/blood-pressure.htm Hope this is ok with the mods for educational purposes.

flywheel

fyi: it's World hypertension day today so you may see teams out in local shopping centers or towns with blood pressure monitors offering testing, info and advice

for anyone near St. Stephen's Green Centre today i spotted a team beside Boots/Argos on level One

davyjose

boneyarsebogman wrote: »

Not sure if this is the right forum for this, so apologies if it's not.

Do people know those machines that are usually in pharmacies - the ones that measure your weight, height, and blood pressure. Silly question but, how accurate are they?
I did it today and it said that my Blood Pressure is:
Maximum Systolic - 177 mmHg
Maximum Diastolic - 78 mmHG
Pulse rate - 81 per min

And underneath it it states that with regards to Systolic, anything above 160 is hypertension.
Basically my question is this; should I get myself checked out by a doctor, or are these machines not entirely accurate. I have recently been diagnosed with arrythmia so that may or may not have something to do with it.

I am not exactly asking for medical advice, more just curious if I should be worried about it.

I should probably add that I'm 22.

I used one of these when I was in America and I got the fright of my life. Turns out I was using it wrong. This could be what happened you - if you use it anwhere near the elbow joint it'll be wrong.
That would lead me to say that they're not very reliable, simply because th people using them don't know what they're doing.

Also, to be sure, see your GP anyway etc etc....

EileenG

Having the cuff too tight (because you have a big muscular arm?) will affect the reading and make it higher than reality.

Get it tested by a real person, not a machine. If you go to Pelican House and donate a pint of blood, they'll test your blood pressure (properly) as they do it, and giving the blood will lower your BP slightly.

flywheel

EileenG wrote: »

Get it tested by a real person, not a machine.

well tested by a professional rather than a slot machine 'real people' (including doctors) use electronic 'machines' now too! it's more about having it done by someone who knows what they are doing (i.e. for proper calibration and correct set-up), like you say to ensure the cuff is on correctly etc.

EileenG wrote: »

...and giving the blood will lower your BP slightly

that's the first time i've see blood letting (albeit transfused) mentioned as a means of lowering your blood pressure since the middle ages lol

EileenG

DubWireless wrote: »

that's the first time i've see blood letting (albeit transfused) mentioned as a means of lowering your blood pressure since the middle ages lol

Actually, it's one of those things which have a medical use. It will lower BP for a while, frequent donating will reduce your chances of haemochromatisis, and it is the gold standard treatment if you have it, and my father (vet) has used it to successfully treat horses with laminitus.

gazzer

Sorry for bumping this thread but didnt want to start a new one. I went back to my GP today after been there last week for my one year check up. Was told last week that my blood pressure was high so I came back today to see what it was like a week on. It was the same (175 over 90) which is moderate hypertension as far as I know.

I was pretty shocked to be honest cos I exercise regularly (Cardio and Compound weights 3 times a week) and my diet is really good. I looked up all the factors that can cause hypertension (Too much salt, smoking, bad diet etc) and none of these apply to me. I suppose it is just bad genetics. :mad:

liamo

Assuming that your lifestyle is not a factor - which, from your post, it does not seem to be - how does your GP propose to manage it?

gazzer

liamo wrote: »

Assuming that your lifestyle is not a factor - which, from your post, it does not seem to be - how does your GP propose to manage it?

She mentioned that I might have to take medication for a prolonged period of time but is going to wait until the results of the 24 hour monitor (along with some blood tests) so I should know in about 2 weeks what is going to happen.

Im just so pissed off at my body cos I really try to live a healthy lifestyle. Im always foregoing nights out drinking with my friends as I want to go to the gym the next day and I have drastically cut down how much I drink. I now go out drinking one evening every 3 weeks. I walk and cycle as much as I can, I grill food instead of frying it, dont eat red meat (eat a lot of chicken). Have the recomended amount of fruit and veg every day, use wholewheat pasta, brown rice etc. Im baffled by it to be honest.

liamo

Bummer!

Hope it all works out ok.

davmol

thats such a pain in th ar*e, my mate is the same.hes very healthy work outwise and foodwise.The only thing he missed out on is the amount of salt in his diet and he works a stressful job but didnt think that would affet him due to the healthiness of his lifestyle.im sure the doc will find something that can be fixed

EileenG

It could also be a case of "White coat hypertension" which is where the thought of having your blood pressure measured makes you tense and raises it higher than it should be. I used to get that when I was pregnant: every time I went near the Rotunda, my blood pressure shot up. When my midwife measured me at home, it was normal.

It might be worth buying one of those home measuring devices and checking it yourself at various times during the day. If it's still high when you are sitting watching tv, then you do have a problem.

pebbles21

EileenG wrote: »

It could also be a case of "White coat hypertension" which is where the thought of having your blood pressure measured makes you tense and raises it higher than it should be. I used to get that when I was pregnant: every time I went near the Rotunda, my blood pressure shot up. When my midwife measured me at home, it was normal.

It might be worth buying one of those home measuring devices and checking it yourself at various times during the day. If it's still high when you are sitting watching tv, then you do have a problem.

+1 with above also you could ask your doctor to organise a 24 hour blood pressure kit from your local hospital/clinic which will monitor your bp for 24 hrs every 20 mins and then give them a read out of the results

milod

pebbles21 wrote: »

...you could ask your doctor to organise a 24 hour blood pressure kit from your local hospital/clinic which will monitor your bp for 24 hrs every 20 mins and then give them a read out of the results

I did this and found my blood pressure rising every half hour in anticipation of the half-hourly test. If you suffer from white coat syndrome (I definitely do) - the 24 hour monitor may not be the answer.

I bought my own monitor (it's an 'Omron' electronic model and is recommended by various hypertension specialists and organisations - some doctors use them too). Basically, it allows you to de-mystify the process and decide when you want to measure it. After a while you get used to it and you'll find your readings are lower than when you go to the doctor or wear a 24hr monitor.