As of: March 17, 2024, 11:40 a.m
By: Anna Katharina Kuesters
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Many illnesses show up when your blood pressure is examined.
Researchers suspect that measuring while sitting is less effective.
According to the Robert Koch Institute,
almost one in three people in Germany has
high blood pressure.
Constantly high blood pressure can be the reason for cardiovascular diseases, which are among the most common causes of death.
The problem is that many people don't know that they suffer from high blood pressure because associated symptoms such as fatigue, headaches or shortness of breath are often attributed to other illnesses.
A regular blood pressure check-up makes sense - especially if it takes place while lying down.
A simple test provides information about blood pressure
Blood pressure reveals a lot about your own health.
© ANTHONY PHOTOGRAPHY/Imago
With every heartbeat, the heart pumps blood throughout the body.
The blood exerts a certain pressure from the inside on the blood vessels - this phenomenon is called blood pressure.
According to the
Health Knowledge Foundation,
doctors measure blood pressure in millimeters of mercury, or mmHg for short.
In the optimal case, blood pressure is below 120/80 mmHg.
It becomes problematic if the first value is 140 or higher and the second value is 90 or higher.
A simple blood pressure test at the doctor's office is usually enough to determine this.
Patients usually have to sit down and then have the blood pressure cuff placed around their upper arm.
However, a scientific study now suggests that the values would be even more accurate if the patients lay down.
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What blood pressure measurement data can reveal
The results of the investigation by Stephen Juraschek and his team from the Beth Israel Deaconess Medial Center have not yet been published as a study.
This means that an independent committee still has to review it.
The results are not yet reliable, but according to the magazine
heart.org
they give a good first impression of how blood pressure testing could be improved in the future.
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The scientific team led by Stephen Juraschek examined test results from blood pressure measurements taken while lying down, sitting or lying on the back.
To do this, the researchers used studies from 11,369 patients, whose average age was 54, and divided them into four groups:
The first group had normal blood pressure values, both while sitting and lying down.
The second group had high blood pressure values while sitting.
The third group had high blood pressure values while lying down.
The fourth group had high blood pressure values when sitting and lying down.
The scientists left out data from people with known heart disease.
Patients lie relaxed
The result after examining the blood pressure readings in different positions was also astonishing for the researchers.
Over time, the two groups with normal blood pressure had a low health risk, whereas the two groups with high blood pressure had a higher health risk - this was to be expected.
What is surprising, however, is that the group that only had high blood pressure when lying down had a similar health risk to those who had high blood pressure both while lying down and sitting.
Stephen Juraschek concludes from this, among other things, that blood pressure measured while lying down can provide earlier information about whether an elevated value is present or not.
And those who are diagnosed with high blood pressure more quickly can also act and combat it more quickly.
However, the scientist also pointed out that a lot of research is still needed in this area before final decisions can be made about the position when measuring blood pressure.
This article only contains general information on the respective health topic and is therefore not intended for self-diagnosis, treatment or medication. It in no way replaces a visit to the doctor. Unfortunately, our editorial team cannot answer individual questions about medical conditions.