Blood pressure monitor: should I buy a wrist or an upper-arm device?
Stores carry a huge variety of different blood pressure monitors, both upper-arm and wrist types. Wrist monitors are typically smaller and cheaper, which tempts you to buy them. Immediately the question arises: am I doing the right thing?
Stores carry a huge variety of different blood pressure measuring devices. Both upper-arm and wrist blood pressure monitors are offered. Wrist devices are usually smaller and cheaper, enticing you to purchase them. Immediately the question arises: are you doing the right thing?
Let me state up front: most of the time you are not doing the right thing! However, there are some cases when you are.
To understand this apparent contradiction, you need to understand the details of blood pressure measurement.
Measuring on the upper arm has been the default method for blood pressure measurement for many decades. In medical practice this is the accepted so-called “gold standard”, to which everything is compared.
The wrist is located further from the heart than the upper arm; its arteries are narrower and lie closer to the skin surface. Comparative studies have shown that values measured at the wrist differ from those measured on the upper arm, so they are often misleading, falsely suggesting either the absence or the presence of hypertension.
For this reason, wrist blood pressure measurement is not accepted or used in medical practice!
So why are wrist blood pressure monitors made?
I consider wrist blood pressure monitors useful in only one situation: when the upper arm is so large that the cuff cannot encircle it and measurement on the upper arm is impossible. In such cases, measurement at the wrist is the only feasible method. The wrist usually remains slimmer even in very obese people and the cuff can be applied. A less accurate measurement is still more useful than no monitoring at all!
Manufacturers of wrist blood pressure monitors often advertise their products by saying they take up less space and are convenient for travel. That is true, but choose what is more important for your health: the more accurate upper-arm blood pressure monitor rather than slight convenience!
My recommendations for choosing a blood pressure monitor
- Choose an upper-arm blood pressure monitor, with an arm cuff size appropriate to your arm circumference.
- If your upper-arm circumference is greater than 42 cm (this is usually the largest cuff size), then choose a wrist blood pressure monitor.
- It is worth spending a few thousand forints more on a good-quality device, because with a cheap piece of junk you can harm yourself. If the device measures inaccurately, you may receive unnecessarily large doses of treatment or conversely less than needed. In both cases you expose yourself to serious risk.
IMPORTANT: If you choose a wrist measuring device, do not try to “verify” its results with an upper-arm blood pressure monitor! The values — given the reasons described above — will not be identical. You are wrong to expect identical values from upper-arm and wrist devices, and you may lose confidence in your treatment!
High blood pressure (hypertension) and its treatment – Dr. Zátrok Zsolt's blog
High blood pressure (hypertension) is currently the most common disease among Hungarians. Hungarian doctors still often hold that it can only be managed with lifelong medication. However, hypertension can be managed by changing lifestyle.
