If you have a particular medical condition or if you have reached a certain age, you may be thinking about monitoring your blood pressure at home yourself. Yes, you can always go to the GP to have it done, but that costs time (and in some countries, money) which you may not have. So, what about checking your blood pressure at home?
How accurate are blood pressure monitors for home use? The fact is that modern monitors are very accurate, yet you should still continue normal visits to your doctor, who will validate the findings of your home monitor.
If your physician has said that you have high blood pressure (hypertension), he or she will almost certainly recommend lifestyle changes or / and medication. It is very difficult to institute lifestyle changes, so if you do, monitoring your hypertension at home and seeing reductions can be very satisfying, yet it can also work the other way around if the alterations do not appear to be having any effect.
Whilst you are deciding which home blood pressure monitor to purchase, there are two fundamental alternatives: the aneroid and digital monitors. The digital monitors have either an automatic or a hand-pumpable cuff.
The other kinds are finger or wrist monitors, but these ought to be avoided as they give pretty erratic or inaccurate readings and they are a lot dearer too. If you do purchase one of these monitors, take it with you to your doctor's and compare its performance against a sphygmomanometer, which is considered the gold standard of blood pressure monitors.
So, let us take for granted, that you purchase a proper monitor with a cuff, the first thing to do to make certain maximum accuracy is to get a cuff that fits you well. This is not normally a problem, but if you are large or small, the instruments within the cuff may not be able to give an accurate reading.
If you want an accurate reading, you should wait at least 45 minutes after drinking caffeine before taking a reading. In fact, you should sit quietly for at least ten minutes, before taking any reading. Other precautions are to go to the bathroom first, not to have smoked or to have taken any alcohol recently. In addition, strap the cuff at least an inch above the crease of your elbow.
You will be hoping for a reading below 120/80 which is considered 'normal'. Readings between normal and 140/90 indicate prehypertension and denote that you need to take some action to avoid entering 'Stage One Hypertension', which is anything over this reading.
Contemporary home digital monitors more than a particular price are highly accurate. The digital home monitor that I use cost $100 four years ago, so it should be cheaper now. It was tested against a sphygmomanometer (the type doctors use) and it was always within the constraints of accuracy prescribed by the American National Standard for Electronic or Automated Sphygmomanometers. Look for that guarantee, if you buy a home monitor.
