Blood Pressure Cuff: Article Analysis

When the cuff is fully inflated to a certain maximum pressure, depending on the patient, typically 180 mmHg, no blood flow occurs through the artery. As it is slowly deflated a series of bounding motions can be heard. The first of these numbers will be recorded as the systolic pressure, while the last of these numbers will be recorded as the diastolic pressure. A BP reading, given in mmHg, has two numbers. The upper number, the systolic pressure, measures the pressure in your arteries when your heart beats. The lower number, the diastolic pressure, measures the pressure in your arteries between beats. Some people experience, what is referred to as, “white coat hypertension.” This is a type of hypertension wherein the patient believes the office to be a stressful environment and, as a result, their BP is artificially higher. There are certain prerequisites before getting BP taken: you can neither drink coffee nor smoke cigarettes for half an hour prior, you must use the restroom as bladder volume may influence BP reading, and you must sit for five minutes beforehand. To accurately diagnose someone, the doctor must take separate reading, on different days, at different times. The ABCDE mnemonic can be used to help determine the presence of hypertension: Accuracy of diagnosis, obstructive sleep apnea, aldosteronism, presence of renal artery; Bruits,

(Marieb and Hoehn, 2010, p 703) defined Blood Pressure (BP) as ‘the force per unit area exerted on a vessel wall by the contained blood, and is expressed in millimetres of mercury (mm Hg)’. BP is still one of the essential and widely used assessment tools in healthcare settings. Nurses generally record the arterial BP which is the forced exerted blood that flows through the arteries, to establish a baseline and to determine any risk factors. BP

It is the measurement of the force of the blood pushing against the artery walls. A blood pressure cuff and a stethoscope is what are used to measure this. While taking you blood pressure two numbers are recorded; Systolic pressure and Diastolic pressure. Systolic pressure is the higher number that refers to the pressure inside the artery when the heart contracts and pumps blood through the body. Diastolic pressure is the lower number and refers to the pressure inside the artery when the heart is at rest and is filling with blood. Having high blood pressure can increase the risk of coronary heart disease (i.e. heart attack, stroke).

Doctors are able to view a patient’s heart activity through the use of an electrocardiograph or ECG. The ECG is configured with 3 leads that measure changes in electrical voltage; these changes are associated with specific parts of the cardiac excitation process. Doctor’s often look at these ECGs to determine if the heart is functioning properly. A standard sinus rhythm contains P, Q, R, S, and T waves that all occur at specific points and form a defined shape. When there is an abnormality in these waves, physicians know the heart is not functioning correctly and they attempt to diagnose the problem. One abnormality is called sinus arrest. Sinus arrest means the SA node is not firing the initial action potential to depolarize the rest of the heart.

We recently amended her medications to include _____(Carbatrol). _____ home pressures are as high as 160 systolic. Other medications are reviewed. Blood pressure program now of consists of Benicar HCT _____(25/40, should be 40/25), Norvasc 2.5, and _____ _____ b.i.d..

A mercury-filled column sphygmomanometer would have worked too and are known to be more accurate than an IVAC machine. An ANOVA was used to analyze the data for differences between blood pressure type (systolic and diastolic) and leg position (crossed and uncrossed leg). (Polit & Beck) “This procedure is appropriate when one group of people is measured at multiple points” The statistical method use was appropriate for this study, the “p value” of < .05 is

NIBP stands for non-invasive blood pressure this works by using a cuff on a patient; this has to be correctly fitted on the arm ensuring that the cuff is lying over the artery. Therefore, when the cuff deflates it sense the amplitude which is transmitted to the cuff by movement of the arterial walls. NIBP is monitored electronically which monitors both pulse and blood pressure (Cuschieri & Hanna, 2015). The reason for this is because the normal blood pressure rate is 120/80mm therefore if the blood pressure is above or below the rate it is considered as either hypertension or hypotension (Cuschieri & Hanna,

Sticky electrodes will be placed on your chest. The electrodes will be connected to an electrocardiogram (EKG) machine to record a tracing of the electrical activity of your heart.

The upper arm needed to be bare, with any sleeve comfortably rolled up. The blood pressure cuff was be wrapped snugly around the upper arm. The group member putting it on had to pay close attention to the labels on the cuff to ensure it was not inside out or twisted. The lower edge of the cuff was about 1 inch above the bend of the elbow. The cuff was inflated quickly to about 160mm Hg; next, the valve of the cuff was opened slightly, allowing the pressure to slowly fall. A standard stethoscope was used to determine blood pressure. The measurer then placed the bell of the stethoscope firmly on the brachial artery of the arm being measured. As the pressure falls, the reading when the sound of blood pulsing was first heard was recorded. This was the systolic pressure. As the air continued to be let out, the sounds disappeared. The point at which the sound disappeared is recorded. This was the diastolic pressure. Inflating the cuff too slowly or not high enough may cause a false reading. If the valve is loosened too much, blood pressure won’t be measurable. The procedure was done at least two more times for accuracy. These results were then averaged. To measure heart rate, the participant found their pulse on the carotid or radial artery using their index or middle finger. The pulse was counted for 15 seconds and then multiplied by 4 to get an accurate beats per minute estimate. This was also done twice and averaged.

Blood pressure is measured by a mechanical tool called the sphygmomanometer. The sphygmomanometer is a device that consists of an inflatable cuff that works mechanically or electronically to restrict blood flow and a mercury scale or digital monometer to calculate the amount of blood flow through the body. The device was invented by Siegfried Karl Ritter von Basch in 1896. It was later modernized by Harvey Crushing in 1901. When a health

A 12-lead electrocardiogram (ECG) monitors and records the heart's electrical activity via electrodes placed on the surface of the body. ECG recording analysis aids us in understanding the rate at which the heart’s chambers depolarize and repolarize (McArdle et al., 2010). By analyzing the sinus rhythm, we can determine whether the heart is functioning within healthy parameters or identify the presence of abnormalities. An ECG also provides insight into the mechanisms and factors leading to the presence of abnormal rhythms such as tachycardia, which occurs in patients after catheter ablation of atrial fibrillation (Dipen, 2011). Lastly, an ECG can show us the electrical axis of the heart, which can be used to identify conditions

Modern day cardiology traces its roots from the complex study of the heart’s electrical impulses. This was made possible through the electrocardiograph or the EKG, a device created to capture and record the heart’s bioelectrical activity. Developed in the early 20th century, this apparatus became one of the most influential technologies in clinical medicine and an invaluable tool for many physicians. John Burnett of the London Science Museum, considered the electrocardiograph as “the most sophisticated scientific instrument in existence when it was first invented” (Burnett 74). It provided a new understanding of the human heart and its diseases and significantly changed the landscape of health care.

Recording an electrocardiogram or ECG, is a procedure which is performed daily all over the United Kingdom by thousands of healthcare workers and in particular nurses (Jacobson, 2000). The way in which this procedure is performed varies from geographical location to location and occasionally even more so, between staff on the same ward (Amos, 2000). This reason stated by Amos (2000), formed the basis of my decision to choose this topic.

With the information found with what a patient’s blood pressure is, it helps health care providers understand the state of the patient’s health. A patient’s blood pressure measures the amount of pressure exerted on arterial walls in the patient’s heart. Blood pressure is measured in two numbers: systolic and diastolic. Systolic, the number listed first in blood pressure readings, reports the amount of force exerted by the blood into the arteries during ventricular contraction.

The participants in this project will be invited to the clinic and their baseline blood pressure reading determine using a validated and automated blood pressure measuring device at the clinic on the first day of the meeting. The Omron (HEM-711AC) blood pressure monitor will also be used to measure the blood pressure of all the participants’ pre and post intervention. The OMRON (HEM-711AC) blood pressure device has been tested and validated for accuracy (Artigao, et al., 2000; Willis, Mohamed, & Taylor, 2013). The individuals in the intervention group will be coached on how to self-measure their blood pressures at home. The data collected prior to the beginning of the project will be compared with the data collected after the implementation of the project. The project will be implemented following the approval from the Chamberlain Institute of Review Board at the end of February 2017.