What are you doing right now..? (Threads Merged)

[boydeste]

I have a couple of Omrons and the only difference is the additional features and the price accordingly. 

Pretty sure the basic cheap one stores the values anyway.

So just buy the cheap one is my advice. 

 

[Painter]

When I arrived in October I realised I'd left my cheapo (£10, from memory) argos BP monitor at home.... so bought this on lazada. It was 160baht. It's got loads of features.... apparently.... and a big button that, if you press it, turns the machine on and reads your BP.... 😀

[Lemondropkid]

36 minutes ago, Painter said:

When I arrived in October I realised I'd left my cheapo (£10, from memory) argos BP monitor at home.... so bought this on lazada. It was 160baht. It's got loads of features.... apparently.... and a big button that, if you press it, turns the machine on and reads your BP.... 😀

Sorry to dazzle you with techno babble, but I suspect the "S" button  saves the reading, and "M" is memory😛 That remembers  it!!! 

PS- did you take the reading from some healthy child?. That display doesn't seem right for a member of this board🤔

Edited February 24, 2023 by Lemondropkid

[Painter]

39 minutes ago, Lemondropkid said:

Sorry to dazzle you with techno babble, but I suspect the "S" button  saves the reading, and "M" is memory😛 That remembers  it!!! 

PS- did you take the reading from some healthy child?. That display doesn't seem right for a member of this board🤔

You mean the M and the S make my pen and paper redundant? Sod that!

And yes, it was my BP reading....I was mighty releaved that my phone's camera woke up in time to take a pic of the momentous event.... it's usually in the region of 130/87...

[fygjam]

3 hours ago, Painter said:

When I arrived in October I realised I'd left my cheapo (£10, from memory) argos BP monitor at home.... so bought this on lazada. It was 160baht. It's got loads of features.... apparently.... and a big button that, if you press it, turns the machine on and reads your BP.... 😀

Actually it doesn't. Well not in the sense that you think of a blood pressure reading.

When you sit in front of the person wearing a white coat and with their mercury or aneroid sphygmomanometer and stethoscope they first pump up the cuff until you arm hurts. This is 'cause the blood stops flowing and they want to see you wince. They then slowly release the pressure in the cuff until a tapping sound is heard in the stethoscope. Noting the pressure at which the first tap was heard, this is the systolic pressure. Continuing to release the pressure, the sounds go through swishing, gurgling etc until they stop. The point at which the sounds stop is the diastolic pressure. The sounds are known as Korotkoff sounds. This method of measuring blood pressure is know as the auscultatory method.

The machines, pictures of which have appeared in previous posts, use the oscillometric method. They still pump up the cuff until blood flow stops but they can't see if you wince. The pressure in the cuff is slowly released. At the point when the first Krotkoff sound would be heard (if the machine had ears), systolic pressure, a slight pressure variation in the cuff is detected as the slug of blood can finally flow down your arm. These pressure variations increase in magnitude as the pressure in the cuff is further reduced until a peak magnitude and then the variations begin to subside. The pressure at which the peak magnitude is recorded is know as the mean arterial pressure or MAP. The MAP is processed by an algorithm, add this, divide by that, take away the number you first thought of, and that's the systolic and diastolic pressures. Smoke and mirrors.

The devices (blood pressure monitors) are validated by various protocols. The British and Irish Hypertension Society (BIHS) has one, there is a European one, the yanks have the American Association of Medical Instruments (AAMI). The validation protocol may depend upon the target market. A validation method involves a group of people having their blood pressure taken, one arm by the machine under test and the other arm by a trained operator with a sphygmomanometer. The readings are noted and then the arms swapped. At the end of the day the numbers are crunched and the machine has to be within a bull's roar of the sphygmomanometer. I don't know what a bull's roar is currently defined as but most of the BP monitors I have looked at and that have been validated under at least one of the protocols usually quote an accuracy of +/- 4mm Hg. Sphygmomanometers usually go in 2mm Hg increments.

A tight cuff (before inflation) or a fast heart rate can result in a higher than actual reading, a loose cuff or slow heart rate can result in a lower than actual reading. Read the manufacturers instructions.

Some monitors like my Omron have an "irregular heart beat" indicator. In the case of Omron, the monitor maintains a running average of the time interval between heart beats. Any interval over or under the running average by 25% or more will bring up the irregular heart beat indicator.

 

[Glasseye]

3 hours ago, boydeste said:

I have a couple of Omrons and the only difference is the additional features and the price accordingly. 

Pretty sure the basic cheap one stores the values anyway.

So just buy the cheap one is my advice. 

 

 

I just bought the more expensive one. I figured with something like that I may as well get the best one.

I have had many cheaper brands over time. All of them ended up in the bin.

This one is the first one I have had that is any good. 

People should not waste their money on the cheaper brands.

[Glasseye]

12 hours ago, galenkia said:

Just leaving the hospital. Doctor gave me medicine to lower my pressure, told me to see my GP again for regular monitoring, and buy a self testing device,

Tests came back okay so safe to go home.

 

I have been taking them for years mate. They work if you stick with them. Sometimes the meds need to be adjusted.

Drop some weight also. That will help heaps. 

And your veggie diet might be nice for you, but a lot of processed veggie foods make up for the flavor with salt. Best to work on the salt than worrying about meat.

[Glasseye]

9 hours ago, galenkia said:

She gave me a sheet with the readings to take to hospital.

210/122

193/112

212/123

So sky high.

 

Oh my... that's nasty

[Glasseye]

11 hours ago, Lemondropkid said:

The medication definitely works, it must have been really bad to send you straight the hospital!!

Give a month monitoring it, along with the meds you will see the readings coming down for sure. QPR will get promoted (next season of course), and you'll be there to see it😀

 

Meds work for sure..... My Dad blacked out on the train coming home from work when he was 64 (age I am now). He got on the meds and adjusted his diet. 

 

Lived well until he was 96.

[boydeste]

27 minutes ago, Glasseye said:

 

I just bought the more expensive one. I figured with something like that I may as well get the best one.

I have had many cheaper brands over time. All of them ended up in the bin.

This one is the first one I have had that is any good. 

People should not waste their money on the cheaper brands.

My point is to buy the cheap Omron one as they all are quality and you are paying for extra functions you don't need.

[Glasseye]

30 minutes ago, boydeste said:

My point is to buy the cheap Omron one as they all are quality and you are paying for extra functions you don't need.

I understand. I don't disagree with you.

My point was regarding the brand, and what I was thinking at the time of purchase.

[galenkia]

Had today booked off work anyway, popped in the doctors this morning to make an appointment. Explained the situation to the receptionist. She gave me a form to fill out regarding yesterday for the triage nurse to see to try and get me seen as soon as possible.

While in town I stopped in Superdrug and bought a monitor for £35.

These are the results from three checks I did, each one lower than the previous. Still high but nothing like the 200+ yesterday. The medicine the doctor gave me definitely helped.

If I keep going it might read normal.

😂

[fygjam]

34 minutes ago, boydeste said:

My point is to buy the cheap Omron one as they all are quality and you are paying for extra functions you don't need.

More to the point, buy one that has been validated under at least one of the protocols.

Meant to add this to my previous post.

https://bihsoc.org/bp-monitors/for-home-use/

Not all Omrons get the tick of approval.

https://bihsoc.org/bp-monitors/not-recommended/

 

[Zambo]

8 minutes ago, galenkia said:

Had today booked off work anyway, popped in the doctors this morning to make an appointment. Explained the situation to the receptionist. She gave me a form to fill out regarding yesterday for the triage nurse to see to try and get me seen as soon as possible.

While in town I stopped in Superdrug and bought a monitor for £35.

These are the results from three checks I did, each one lower than the previous. Still high but nothing like the 200+ yesterday. The medicine the doctor gave me definitely helped.

If I keep going it might read normal.

😂

Luckily (i think that probably is the right word) my blood pressure is normal. But from my experience the medication is very reliable and your blood pressure will stabilise soon. You need the monitor for occasional checks, especially if feeling dizzy, not every day. You seem to be taking great health precautions already - diet, weight, alcohol - just let the meds stabilise.

[Glasseye]

19 minutes ago, galenkia said:

Had today booked off work anyway, popped in the doctors this morning to make an appointment. Explained the situation to the receptionist. She gave me a form to fill out regarding yesterday for the triage nurse to see to try and get me seen as soon as possible.

While in town I stopped in Superdrug and bought a monitor for £35.

These are the results from three checks I did, each one lower than the previous. Still high but nothing like the 200+ yesterday. The medicine the doctor gave me definitely helped.

If I keep going it might read normal.

😂

 

 

 

 

[fygjam]

34 minutes ago, Zambo said:

Luckily (i think that probably is the right word) my blood pressure is normal. But from my experience the medication is very reliable and your blood pressure will stabilise soon. You need the monitor for occasional checks, especially if feeling dizzy, not every day. You seem to be taking great health precautions already - diet, weight, alcohol - just let the meds stabilise.

Sorry but I have to disagree on a couple of points. Not all BP meds work for all people.

When I first decided to do something about my BP, I was about 160-180 systolic, the doc said "ACE inhibitors, they're the bee's knees." Well after a couple of months on the ACE inhibitors, checking my BP every few days, they did SFA.

Back to the doc. "Calcium channel blockers, they'll sort you out for sure." Well after a couple of months on the calcium channel blockers, checking every few days, they again did bugger all.

Back to the doc. By this time I had done a bit of my own research. Some people require an ACE inhibitor/calcium channel blocker combo, that's why they make a combo pill. "Good idea" says the doc. That got my BP down to the high end of acceptable. 135 systolic. My diastolic was always normal. It's called isolated systolic hypertension.

Then for various reasons I had to go off the combo pill and go on to an old school Beta Blocker. BP now typically 115/65 but it can vary a bit. So the meds need fine tuning to suit the individual. And the only way to see if you're going in the right direction is to check regularly.

 

[Zambo]

1 minute ago, fygjam said:

Sorry but I have to disagree on a couple of points. Not all BP meds work for all people.

When I first decided to do something about my BP, I was about 160-180 systolic, the doc said "ACE inhibitors, they're the bee's knees." Well after a couple of months on the ACE inhibitors, checking my BP every few days, they did SFA.

Back to the doc. "Calcium channel blockers, they'll sort you out for sure." Well after a couple of months on the calcium channel blockers, checking every few days, they again did bugger all.

Back to the doc. By this time I had done a bit of my own research. Some people require an ACE inhibitor/calcium channel blocker combo, that's why they make a combo pill. "Good idea" says the doc. That got my BP down to the high end of acceptable. 135 systolic. My diastolic was always normal. It's called isolated systolic hypertension.

Then for various reasons I had to go off the combo pill and go on to an old school Beta Blocker. BP now typically 115/65 but it can vary a bit. So the meds need fine tuning to suit the individual. And the only way to see if you're going in the right direction is to check regularly.

 

You are correct to jump in with better knowledge. As usual medical issues not so straightforward.

[coxyhog]

Something to raise my BP....the missus got her bus pass today,so now I'm married to an OAP....as if I didn't feel old enough already!

I'm going to celebrate by playing a few games of snooker then she's cooking me my dinner.

Said I'd take her for a nice meal but she prefers to cook & she is very good at it.

Got some bubbly in the fridge.

The way we were....

 

[Zambo]

20 minutes ago, coxyhog said:

Something to raise my BP....the missus got her bus pass today,so now I'm married to an OAP....as if I didn't feel old enough already!

I'm going to celebrate by playing a few games of snooker then she's cooking me my dinner.

Said I'd take her for a nice meal but she prefers to cook & she is very good at it.

Got some bubbly in the fridge.

The way we were....

 

Fantastic photo. There must be a load of memories there. What year is that?

[coxyhog]

1 hour ago, Zambo said:

Fantastic photo. There must be a load of memories there. What year is that?

1991 or 2

[Zambo]

10 minutes ago, coxyhog said:

1991 or 2

I first flew into BKK from Libya in 91, half a lifetime ago. Many happy memories from then

[galenkia]

Off to meet my mate soon. We’re gonna see a rock covers band in Henley on Thames.

Play songs from across the 60’s to 90’s.

[coxyhog]

3 hours ago, Zambo said:

I first flew into BKK from Libya in 91, half a lifetime ago. Many happy memories from then

My first was from Saudi in 81,likewise many great memories.

 

[galenkia]

Just got on the train at Henley. Brilliant gig tonight. They played all the old classic rock bands like Stones, Who, Hendrix, Queen, Zeppelin, Fleetwood Mac etc. Great musicians and did a brilliant version of Freebird.

Really enjoyed it, and next gig is an AC/DC tribute band in Reading next Friday.

[galenkia]

Good day for exercise.

15,742 steps, 7.82 miles and 20 flights climbed.