How do you measure a blood pressure reading?
Answer
First, avoid any stimulants, such as caffeine, tobacco, or alcohol, for at least 30 minutes before a reading. You should also wait 30 minutes after exercising. Take your pressure on your non-dominant arm. Lift that forearm to heart level and support it on the desk so it stays comfortably elevated. Open your palm and face it up. Locate your pulse by gently placing your index and middle fingers on the inside of the crease in your elbow. Press down gently and slide your fingers slowly over the area until you feel rhythmic pulsing. This is your brachial artery.
Look for an arrow or line on the cuff that should be lined up with the pulse from your brachial artery. Hold the sphygmomanometer in your non-dominant hand. Place the stethoscope over the spot where you located your pulse. With your dominant hand, hold the bulb and close the valve by turning the screw in a clockwise direction. Then squeeze the bulb quickly to inflate the cuff until the indicator in the sphygmomanometer is about 30 points higher than your expected systolic number. Watch the gauge carefully as you slowly open the valve, and remember the number it reads when you hear your first beat; this is the systolic, or top number, of your blood pressure. As you continue to slowly let out the air, look for the number on the gauge at the moment when you no longer hear the beat; this is the diastolic, or bottom number, of your blood pressure. Finish by deflating the cuff.
What are normal blood pressure readings? Systolic less than 120/ diastolic less than 80 Elevated blood pressure readings are 120-129/ less than 80. Hypertension stage I is 130-139/ 80-89. Hypertension stage II would be a systolic greater than 140/ diastolic greater than 90