Blood Pressure Monitor for 24 Hours

A simple test, the 24-hour BP monitor helps you gauge your health status.

Ambulatory Blood Pressure Monitoring (ABPM) is a test that intakes your blood pressure on a regular basis throughout the day while you carry along with your normal routine. It employs a small blood pressure machine with a tube which connects to a belt near your waist and arm cuff. It’s small enough that it won’t interfere with your daily activities, and you can even wear it to bed.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Why should you do it?

Your doctor can get a clear picture of how your pressure changes throughout day and night taking it at regular intervals over the course of 24 hours.

This test may be recommended by your doctor for a variety of reasons:

• To determine if you have high blood pressure and how high it is on a daily basis.

• Your pressure shows consistently high at your doctor’s office, he or she may want to know if it is lower elsewhere (Also called the “white coat effect.”)

• Your doctor may want to check your overall blood pressure throughout a day to see how much it varies.

• To see how well the medications are functioning and to ensure that your overall blood pressure remains stable throughout day and night.

• To see if your blood pressure remains elevated while you’re sleeping. Your doctor would wish to change or amend your medications if this is the case.

Procedure:

You must schedule an appointment for this test, and there may be a minor price since Medicare doesn’t cover it in Australia.

• The blood pressure cuff is wrapped near the upper arm as well as fastened. You can utilise either arm.

• The blood pressure monitor is worn on the belt which is worn near the waist.

• The technician double-checks that the battery will last for 24 hours and the machine too is in good working order.

• The cuff steadily expands, then slowly deflates to record the pressure every 30 to 60 minutes, based on the settings. This equipment works the same way like any other blood pressure monitor.

• The blood pressure is taken throughout a 24-hour period. It’s advisable to not turn it off at night, since reading at night is just as vital. The machine is typically installed at your local hospital’s outpatient department, however some GP offices can have their own.

• Since the test conducted to determine your normal daily blood pressure, it’s critical that you proceed with your typical activities.

Suggestions:

• Always ensure the line going to the cuff from the machine isn’t bent or twisted to ensure the machine is working fine.

• The machine may beep before a reading is taken. As this happens, see to it that you relax, keep yourself still, and sit down if possible.

• You’ll be required to log down your findings in a diary shortly before any reading, or the time when you slept and woke up. Some people find 24-hour ABPM to be both irritating and unsettling. Please inform the doctor in case you feel anything particular while your readings are being taken, since this may alter your results.

We’re delighted to have you get treated at Pakenham Medical Clinic.