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Ambulatory Blood Pressure Monitoring

AMBULATORY BLOOD PRESSURE MONITORING
If you have high blood pressure (hypertension), then you may need an ambulatory blood pressure monitor.
 
Ambulatory blood pressure monitoring is a method to measure blood pressure on a continuous basis, it is used to determine what kind of hypertension a patient has and ensure better options for treatment.
 
It is a small machine, about the size of a portable radio, which could be worn on a belt for 24 hours. The blood pressure cuff on the monitor can be worn under your clothes without anyone seeing it. This monitor then records your blood pressure every 15 to 30 minutes of a normal day. The information collected can help us to see if your blood pressure treatment is working.
 
It is worthy to note that not everyone with high blood pressure is asked to wear a monitor. But your doctor may require you to wear ambulatory blood pressure monitor to determine if:
 
Your blood Pressure cannot be kept under control
You have blood pressure problems caused by the use of other medicines
You are pregnant and have high blood pressure
You have “borderline” high blood pressure.
You have difficulty controlling BP with medication
If you have this kind of hypertension, you may not need to take blood pressure medicine.
 
The monitor may help us find out if you have masked hypertension, this will help your administer the medications needed for high blood pressure. The incidence of stroke, heart disease, and organ damage due to hypertension can also be reduced among those patients.
Ambulatory monitoring may also be useful in evaluating a patient’s response to long-acting anti hypertensive medications.
 
The small blood pressure cuff that is connected to the monitor will automatically check your blood pressure about every 30 minutes even while you are sleeping. This gives your doctor information about when you were active and when you were resting.
 
After 24 hours of monitoring, you will take the machine and your diary to the doctor’s office. The blood pressure information is transferred from the monitor to a computer. Which will use determine if your treatment program is working or if you need to make changes?