Blood pressure monitors

We have a basic one bought from Boots or Lloyd's, I think.

Mine is an Omron Intellisense (recommended to me a few years back) and I've also been told to take daily readings and report back next week.

In the past, I took it to the surgery to have it checked for accuracy - but I doubt that they're doing that at present. Everything is no contact or minimal contact at present.

I have high blood pressure and was told get yourself a blood pressure monitor to have at home. Once in a while I will be asked to do a weeks reading of my blood pressure and then drop it at the surgery. I bought my one from Boots at about £25 so not too bad.

In the past I would get a call from the doctor to come and get my blood pressure checked, long before Covid 19 even started the medical council made cuts to many of the general check-ups the surgery used to do, all part of funding.

Same as others, I have to take a weeks readings and email them to my GP. Only last week I bought a new BP machine from Sainsbury's for £19.99. Does the job, nice and neat for easy storage.

Having extremely high BP, I too have an Omron, bought online. It's exactly the same model as my GP has.

Another vote for Omron. I bought it in Argos for £22. It has all the same features as the Omron model at £34 only it doesn’t store multiple readings. I just write them down.

I, too, was advised to buy a monitor when I last attended for annual bloods/check. I questioned how I could be sure of the accuracy over a period of time - in general practice such medical instruments should be calibrated annually. I was told by the HCA that they didn't bother with calibration as they find it more cost effective to use cheap ones and replace!

I take my monitor every so often to the surgery where it is checked against theirs. It has been spot on every time.

The home monitors are fairly accurate, we have two, one is a wrist type and the other is an upper arm cuff. One is a Braun, can't remember what the other is.

My Bp was sky high at a pre op assessment and a GP told me to buy a monitor (£25 from Boots)
A week’s monitoring showed my average Bp at home was absolutely normal. Very reassuring.

mine is an Omron and it is fine. The instructions are very easy to follow.

You need one with a cuff that goes around your upper arm. More reliable.

Agree with Alexa about the upper arm ones. Mine is a Lloyd's basic but reliable was checked against the surgery's and it was spot on. My average weekly readings too have been much more acceptable than those I get at my check up! I now just check randomly a couple of times a week.

Don’t forget to check the cuff on the monitor is the right size. Some fit smaller upper arms than others.

I have had a blood pressure monitor for years. Some have been much noisier than others and some have started up suddenly with a sharp sound and alarm you. If at all possible listen to them if you are easily startled!

My newest one is also an Omron. It is reasonably quiet and not alarming.

I have an Omron machine too. I check my bp on the 1st of the month and record, then when i go for my check up 6monthly at surgery they take the average from my readings plus take my BP on their machine. So far so good, no need for meds. checks are done as BP issues run in my family.

Mine is an Omron Intellisense and it has a memory button which gives the past 20 readings which is quite good for comparisons.
Mind you, you'd think it contained two peoples' readings as 102/62 can jump to 150/101 in a day or less for me. A difference of 50 or 60 figure is strangely common for me.

Elianne until I had to wear a 24hr monitor I didn't know and wouldn't have believed that BP can and does go up and down through the day, even to the extent you mention!

Yes, it's called labile BP, Bluesky, something to do with how the vessels work.

I use a cuff one because the upper arm ones are really painful, though not as painful as the one used in the surgery. But the cuff one makes my hand go numb with pins and needles. My husband says he feels no pain, just a gentle squeezing.
Odd isn't it?

Mine's the Omron, bought online following advice from the practice nurse. £30 is all it cost. Like others, I've been advised to monitor my BP for a week and provide a report which I can either email or post through the door of the surgery. The doctor will review my readings and advise. Simple.

Omron or Boots. Have both, equally reliable.

Can I give a shout out for having an OXIMETER in the home alongside a blood pressure monitor.

I thoroughly recommend using an OXIMETER and have found ours invaluable and it can be a possible life saver because it is simple to use , accurate and when passing information to relevant sources in an emergency aids their ability to assess your health from a distance and need for urgent attention.

The doctor wasn't convinced I had HBP and asked of I could test it for a fortnight. I bought an Omron. Did three readings a day. Morning, noon and night and proceeded to prepare a spreadsheet for the doctor. It proved I didn't have HBP and was suffering from the medication a consultant had recommended for me.

I should have said it was an Omron wrist monitor I chose