Top 5 reasons your automated BP monitor gave an error code

“The real problem is not whether machines think but whether men do.”  ~B.F. Skinner, Contingencies of Reinforcement, 1969

Sometimes, the more technology aims to help us, the more burden we take on to ensure it works. These days, automated blood pressure monitors are rapidly displacing mercury and aneroid sphygmomanometers in physician’s offices. As we move farther away from the 100 year old standard of listening for Korotkoff sounds to obtain a BP measurement, and towards the simple press of a button, there are a new set of usage factors that clinicians must remember when encountering problems.

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Wrist versus Upper Arm Blood Pressure Measurement

Is wrist BP an acceptable way to guide treatment for obese patients?

For over 100 years, upper arm blood pressure (BP) measurement has been the gold standard method to guide treatment decisions. This is the recommended technique by both the American Heart Association (AHA) and the European Society of Hypertension (ESH).

For almost nearly as long, it has been well documented that inappropriate sizing of blood pressure cuffs can contribute significantly to errors in blood pressure measurement. Of the most common errors is "undercuffing", which occurs when using cuffs that are too small or too narrow for the patient's arm circumference.

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Blood Pressure Monitoring at 30 Thousand Feet?

Blood pressure is everywhere nowadays. While we are used to seeing it measured in the hospital, clinic, and even at home, what about on an airplane? RDT Ltd makes this possible with their product and service called Tempus IC, which is used by non-medically trained staff to save lives in remote locations such as in-flight or at sea.

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