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Upper Arm or Wrist Monitor ? |
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Should I use an Upper Arm or Wrist Blood Pressure (BP) Monitor?
Technically speaking, the Upper Arm Monitor is best since it is closer to your heart. However, a Wrist Monitor is easy to use and very convenient.
BP measured at the Wrist will always be a little higher than the Upper Arm due to narrowing of the Brachial Artery. Just like a garden hose with an adjustable nozzle, as the nozzle opening is restricted, pressure increases. As the heart pumps a volume of blood into the Brachial Artery, pressure must also increase if arterial narrowing occurs.
Using this analogy, Upper Arm BP is always higher than Central BP, or the BP at your heart. So, both Upper Arm and Wrist BP are only estimates of Central BP.
● Rule► 1: Never use both monitor types. The data will confuse bp Trax and your MD.
● Rule► 2: Read your Monitor Manual and follow instructions.
● Rule► 3: Always use Resting BP Procedures. (See Trax News #2)
bp Trax is designed to compare the “relative performance” of your different BP Treatments. Therefore, both Upper Arm and Wrist monitors will find which treatments work best 4U, if you follow the Rules!
Mike Kohut, President, DDMS
Copyright: 2014 by DDMS & iMobLife |
