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Measuring blood pressure for less than a dollar using a phone

arstechnica.com

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Re: Measuring blood pressure for less than a dollar using a phone

#41

Post by devjab »

mhb wrote: post #3

Super clever. But one of the comments: This measures blood pressure in the fingers. There is no consistent way to translate that to a brachial artery blood pressure, which IS 'close enough' to the aortic valve. No calculations are needed, because the bloods pressure at the brachial artery will be only a few mm/Hg lower than it is at the aorta. But on the way to the fingers, the blood pressure lowers, and a multitude…

The way ADHD medicine works in Denmark, I need to get my blood pressure measured at my doctors office every 3 months, and a while back when it was around the limit of being too high, they wanted me to do it at home for a period. So I asked if I could use one of these finger things, or even just a wrist thing and their answer was a clear no. Exactly because the number is essentially useless medically by our national guidelines.

Sometimes our national guidelines are a little outdated. The ADHD medicine type that worked the best for me is still only approved for quitting smoking (which is why I don’t use it because that means it’s often out of stock since it’s not a “vital” medicine that gets priority stock”) but also goes to show that sometimes we’re a little slow to approve things. So I don’t know if these finger readers are in that category and will eventually become viable, or if they really don’t work. But I do think it’s worth looking into before you rely too much on them.

Re: Measuring blood pressure for less than a dollar using a phone

#43

Post by ars »

mhb wrote: post #3

Super clever. But one of the comments: This measures blood pressure in the fingers. There is no consistent way to translate that to a brachial artery blood pressure, which IS 'close enough' to the aortic valve. No calculations are needed, because the bloods pressure at the brachial artery will be only a few mm/Hg lower than it is at the aorta. But on the way to the fingers, the blood pressure lowers, and a multitude…

Can this be used to measure trends in blood pressure?

Or are do restrictions to the fingers very?

Re: Measuring blood pressure for less than a dollar using a phone

#44

Post by stinos »

voidfunc wrote: post #11
car wrote: post #9

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I’m not a doctor but my personal belief is that hypertension is over diagnosed. A lot of people have “white coat” syndrome, and pharma companies love to get people on never-ending prescriptions. Thanks for letting us know that you are in fact not a doctor. Because your belief is patently wrong. Source: I am a doctor. https://baptisthealth.net/baptist-health-news/high-blood-pre...

I have high BP, I sort of see where OP is coming from... you need a lot of BP numbers to gain confidence about how bad the situation is. A one-off doctor visit once a year is not enough but it is often how the diagnosis is made. My best recommendation for people is to get a BP cuff and just get comfortable with taking samplings periodically through the day. I take anywhere from 3 to 10 readings a day and over a month…

A one-off doctor visit once a year is not enough but it is often how the diagnosis is made

Is that actually so? Around here, the very first thing which each doctor I know off is going to say after a high reading in such one-off visit is exactly your second paragraph, because they are well aware one-off readings cannot be trusted for a diagnosis and are typically higher because of white coat stress and whatnot.

Re: Measuring blood pressure for less than a dollar using a phone

#45

Post by hackernewds »

mhb wrote: post #3

Super clever. But one of the comments: This measures blood pressure in the fingers. There is no consistent way to translate that to a brachial artery blood pressure, which IS 'close enough' to the aortic valve. No calculations are needed, because the bloods pressure at the brachial artery will be only a few mm/Hg lower than it is at the aorta. But on the way to the fingers, the blood pressure lowers, and a multitude…

That is very interesting, since even in hospitals they have a finger squeeze blood pressure. Or what about taking blood pressure on the biceps.

Re: Measuring blood pressure for less than a dollar using a phone

#46

Post by cinntaile »

hackernewds wrote: post #45
mhb wrote: post #3

Super clever. But one of the comments: This measures blood pressure in the fingers. There is no consistent way to translate that to a brachial artery blood pressure, which IS 'close enough' to the aortic valve. No calculations are needed, because the bloods pressure at the brachial artery will be only a few mm/Hg lower than it is at the aorta. But on the way to the fingers, the blood pressure lowers, and a multitude…

That is very interesting, since even in hospitals they have a finger squeeze blood pressure. Or what about taking blood pressure on the biceps.

Maybe the point in hospitals isn't to have an accurate measure of blood pressure but to notice (bigger) changes in blood pressure?

The brachial artery that the parent mentions is located in the biceps by the way.

Re: Measuring blood pressure for less than a dollar using a phone

#47

Post by IndySun »

fibonachos wrote: post #36
westurner wrote: post #6

Earlier quoted context omitted.

An open source app off Fdroid like HeartBeat may or may not have a similar error rate: https://github.com/berdosi/HeartBeat I think I picked up a dedicated unit finger pulse oximeter for like $20. FWIU Apple Watch is one product with FDA approval as a medical device (ECG Electrocardiogram) for detection of AFib Atrial Fibrillation and Parkinsons. Medical device design > Pathway to clearance or approval: https://en.wi…

My Apple Watch detected an AFib about a year and a half ago. Was mildly freaked out at the time but glad that I got the alert. Nothing major, thankfully. Was on a mostly plant-based diet (no meat at all) and wasn't getting enough iron. Easy fix.

>...Was on a mostly plant-based diet (no meat at all)...

i.e., A vegetarian diet?

Re: Measuring blood pressure for less than a dollar using a phone

#48

Post by martyvis »

hackernewds wrote: post #45
mhb wrote: post #3

Super clever. But one of the comments: This measures blood pressure in the fingers. There is no consistent way to translate that to a brachial artery blood pressure, which IS 'close enough' to the aortic valve. No calculations are needed, because the bloods pressure at the brachial artery will be only a few mm/Hg lower than it is at the aorta. But on the way to the fingers, the blood pressure lowers, and a multitude…

That is very interesting, since even in hospitals they have a finger squeeze blood pressure. Or what about taking blood pressure on the biceps.

Are you sure they are measuring blood pressure on the fingers? My experience (just spent 21 days in a major hospital) and BP is always measured with a cuff. The finger sensor is for oxygen saturation and pulse.

Re: Measuring blood pressure for less than a dollar using a phone

#49

Post by vxNsr »

car wrote: post #9
SoftTalker wrote: post #8

I’m not a doctor but my personal belief is that hypertension is over diagnosed. A lot of people have “white coat” syndrome, and pharma companies love to get people on never-ending prescriptions.

I’m not a doctor but my personal belief is that hypertension is over diagnosed. A lot of people have “white coat” syndrome, and pharma companies love to get people on never-ending prescriptions. Thanks for letting us know that you are in fact not a doctor. Because your belief is patently wrong. Source: I am a doctor. https://baptisthealth.net/baptist-health-news/high-blood-pre...

> Source: I am a doctor.

Extraordinary claims require extraordinary proof. Especially if you’re linking to a pop-health website to support your opinions.

Re: Measuring blood pressure for less than a dollar using a phone

#50

Post by GordonS »

hackernewds wrote: post #45
mhb wrote: post #3

Super clever. But one of the comments: This measures blood pressure in the fingers. There is no consistent way to translate that to a brachial artery blood pressure, which IS 'close enough' to the aortic valve. No calculations are needed, because the bloods pressure at the brachial artery will be only a few mm/Hg lower than it is at the aorta. But on the way to the fingers, the blood pressure lowers, and a multitude…

That is very interesting, since even in hospitals they have a finger squeeze blood pressure. Or what about taking blood pressure on the biceps.

Those finger devices don't measure blood pressure, they measure pulse and oxygen saturation.
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