Hypertension has now become a chronic disease with high incidence in the elderly, in order to better prevent hypertension, many middle-aged and elderly people will prepare a blood pressure meter at home to monitor their blood pressure at any time, in addition, patients who have suffered from hypertension also need to measure blood pressure regularly to avoid fluctuations in blood pressure.
However, the blood pressure monitor is a medical device after all, if you do not pay attention to some details during operation, it is easy to have inaccurate measurement results.
So, what should you pay attention to when measuring blood pressure at home?
1. Pay attention to the time when measuring blood pressure
Human blood pressure is not constant throughout the day, different times of measurement of blood pressure is also different, in order to make the measurement results more accurate, should be measured at a fixed time every day, it is recommended to measure blood pressure at 6 to 10 o'clock every morning, in addition to measuring blood pressure at 4 to 8 o'clock in the afternoon.
2. The choice of blood pressure meter
At present, the commonly used blood pressure monitor includes an electronic blood pressure meter and a mercury blood pressure meter, theoretically speaking, the results measured by the mercury blood pressure meter are more accurate, but it requires a certain medical foundation to operate, for ordinary people, if the operation is improper, it will affect the accuracy of the measurement results;
Therefore, it is more recommended that ordinary people choose an electronic blood pressure monitor, which is simple and convenient to operate, although its measurement results have subtle errors, but can be ignored.
3. It is best not to eat before measuring blood pressure
It is best not to eat breakfast before measuring blood pressure, but also to avoid smoking, drinking, or drinking coffee, strong tea and other drinks, otherwise it will speed up the speed of blood flow, so that the blood pressure value will rise, affecting the measurement results.
If you have eaten breakfast before the measurement, it is recommended to take a 30 to 40 minute break before taking the measurement after the blood flow slows down and the blood pressure stabilizes.
4. Pay attention to the measurement posture
When measuring blood pressure, the arm that needs to be measured should be placed on the table, try to keep the cuff and the heart at the same level, and pay attention to the cuff tightening and moderation, so as to accommodate two hands and feet, and the legs should be relaxed when measuring, avoiding the legs of erlang, so as not to affect the measurement results.
Some studies believe that the action of undressing can cause a temporary increase in blood pressure, especially undressing, so it is recommended to measure blood pressure at least 6 minutes apart after undressing, and it is best not to wear a pullover when measuring blood pressure.
5. Correctly record blood pressure values
When measuring blood pressure, many people will take the measurement results as a whole number for the convenience of recording, which is likely to record the original normal blood pressure value as a hypertension value, such as recording 139/88 mmHg as 140/90 mm Hg, which should also be avoided.
6. The blood pressure meter should be calibrated regularly
Whether it is an electronic blood pressure monitor or a mercury blood pressure monitor, it must be calibrated regularly, otherwise it will affect the accuracy of the measurement results.
General mercury blood pressure monitor calibration at least once a year, electronic blood pressure meter needs to be calibrated once every six months, it is recommended to choose a sales manufacturer for calibration, if you can not find a facility that can provide calibration services, you can also carry a home blood pressure monitor at the time of treatment, and the value measured by the hospital blood pressure meter is compared.
When measuring blood pressure, if you want to get more accurate results, you should pay attention to the measuring instrument, measurement time and measurement posture, etc., when measuring blood pressure, if you find that the results are abnormal, it is best to measure several times, if you determine that blood pressure is beyond the normal range, you should seek medical treatment in time, actively adjust, and maintain blood pressure within the normal range.