Bp

[Deb1838]

Just had the stroke team in at work so I went to ask them about suitable bp machine for Home as mine just comes up with an error code.

Just scared myself as bp come up as 145/119 now got myself upset again.

Bp is normally good but I am in af so is this why bp is high and how accurate is this, should I be asking for my rampril to be increased.

Thank you in advance

[BobD Volunteer]

My BP goes up in arrhythmia. Few machcines are acurate if you are in AF. Try not to worry.

[Deb1838 in reply to BobD]

Ok thank you Bob. she made me feel as if I was doomed and that I must go straight to Drs but it was high then and they weren’t overly worried

[Hidden]

Hi Deb,

If you wanna become a BP monitor junkie then the one I use which also identifies AF is the Microlife WatchBP Home monitor ... recommended by NICE. But there are other brands such as Omron.

All will give you your BP reading and flash an icon indicating you are in AF. Most will allow you to download to a computer the readings thereby giving evidence that you were in AF at a particular time or periods of time.

Mine records 250 readings so if you feel you are in AF it'll all be recorded.

For me, the day I was diagnosed with AF I started the day feeling as if I was going down with Flu - no cardiac symptoms at all until I caught by accident my BP behaving erratically and then getting shedloads of error messages.

John

[Deb1838 in reply to Hidden]

Thank you John I have an old omron bp monitor which worked fine but not now I am in af. Just shows error message,!i am meant for to monitor as I have type 2 as well

[Hidden in reply to Deb1838]

Yep Deb, that's what happened to me basically, when it did work it showed falling BP, bottomed out at about 76/50 when my GP put me into A & E - that's when I got a reading at all !

Otherwise just error messages. not so with my Microlife - it tells me I'm in AF. I often can be asymptomatic and so its pretty good for me to have something that actually records the AF event - if only to prove it to my medical people.

John

[Deb1838 in reply to Hidden]

Thank you John I will invest in a micro life then. I find it all quite stressful which doesn’t hep my af !!

[allserene]

I claim the prize as the top hypochondriac when it comes to BP monitors ! I bought one but the readings were far apart, so I bought another to check on the first. Then I realized I had two monitors but didn't know which one was lying to me. So then I bought a third so I could go with the democratic majority.... I had just read an article on Airbus which is fly by wire...and they have FIVE computers onboard and the boss computer wants all five to agree before it flies you into a mountain side... In reality, you will know if you are running at 150 bpm and whether its 150 or 160 or 140 doesn't really matter coz you know you have to take immediate action...

[Ianc2]

I have permanent regularly irregular af. I have yet to find a machine that works. EE is my default reading, even in the hospital.

Usually , after much embarrassed muttering, someone goes and digs out a sphygometer(sp?), Pump it and listen, Which tends to read about 140/80. More muttering, should be lower,etc,. Ah, yes more pills.

But I am 74 and a couple of months ago I slowly and gently collapsed following a 6 mile walk, laid on the floor, for couple of minutes then up I got. 'ok, who tripped me up''. .? Etc.

So forget the pills, drink at least 3 extra pints of water every day, re-time my existing medication (rampiril), and see if it happens again, and don't forget to eat some salt. I await further events.. none hopefully.

If you do find one please let me know.

[Hidden]

An isolated reading isn’t of much significance. You should measure your BP three times a day (take the average of three readings each time, i.e. 9 readings altogether). Don’t use a wrist monitor as these are inaccurate. Omron monitors are the most accurate and recommended by my GP surgery.