In the world there are more than 1,100 million people with hypertension , according to data from the World Health Organization. Many others have the disease and do not know it — more than four million in Spain. Excess pressure hardens the arteries and reduces the flow of blood and oxygen to the heart, which can lead to complications such as chest pain, heart attack, heart failure, and stroke. Hence the importance of something as simple and important as taking stress.
This test is not usually lacking in a routine check-up with the GP: the doctor inflates a cuff on the patient's arm and, while listening carefully with a stethoscope, glances at the pressure gauge that marks the blood pressure figures. Up to 40 we will perform it approximately every three years, unless there is a family history that indicates that the disease may appear earlier. “It is from this age when we must be really attentive. Without being obsessed, as long as it is in the normal figures [between 120-129 mmHg for the systolic and 80 to 84 mmHg for the dysatholic] it would be enough to measure it once a year ”, points out cardiologist Amelia Carro. And although our specialist is already in charge of doing it, he adds that it does not hurt to have a blood pressure monitor at home.
The blood pressure monitor, arm or wrist?
If you are an indecisive person, choosing the blood pressure monitor will not be an easy task. Not only are there quite different options, it is also clear that not just anyone is worth it ... The best thing, unless you have the knowledge to use it, is to forget about one like the one used by the doctor in consultation. "You have to know how to read it well and at home you usually need a second person to help," says Carro. So make your life simpler and opt for a digital one. Attention: it has to be validated to ensure that the measurement will be correct . That is, jointly or separately, it must be manufactured according to the protocols of the British Hypertension Society, or the European Hypertension Society, or the Association for the Advancement of Medical Instruments. There are several lists of brands and models that meet the necessary requirements, point out from the Spanish Heart Foundation, from where they recommend those of the arm before those of the wrist, which are usually less reliable.
When starting to use it, you have to keep certain guidelines in mind. The first is that it is not worth taking blood pressure at any time because “the frequency varies throughout the day. It is best to do it when you get up. The more relaxed and restful we are, the better, ”says Carro. This does not refer to the first thing in the morning, it will depend on the schedules of each one. Nor can "eat, drink, smoke or exercise before taking it because it can alter the measurement," continues Carro.
The Spanish Heart Foundation recommends doing the measurement sitting on a chair, with your back supported by the backrest and without crossing your legs. In addition, if we wear clothing that can oppress the arm, we must remove them before starting. The cuff of the blood pressure monitor should be about two to three centimeters above the elbow, which should be flexed at the level of the heart and with the palm of the hand facing upwards. It is also not possible to speak during the measurement and it is advisable to repeat it two minutes later and keep the average of both figures.
And what if I get high?
"From 140 mmHg of systolic and 90 mmHg of diastolic it is considered hypertension", explains Carro, and indicates that if they are our figures we should not let it pass. You have to tell your doctor to be able to control it. And it is not worth leaving it under the excuse of "the tension of a white coat", which amounts to blaming the rise on the nerves caused by going to the doctor. “Although the pressure can vary for different reasons, a rise of more than 19 mm of mercury [from 120 to 140 mmHg systolic] is never normal. Not even when it comes down right away. We have to think that tension is like a balloon: we can inflate and deflate it several times, but the latex is giving way until it bursts. Those are our arteries, ”explains Carro.
Once hypertension is diagnosed, those who suffer from it “should take it several times a day to have a general control. Although if they do not have access to a blood pressure monitor for a couple of days, nothing happens as long as we have the right one to regulate it and keep it under control ”. To take it several times a day, the guidelines are similar: you have to avoid eating, drinking, smoking or doing physical activity during the previous half hour.
