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The Measurement of Blood Pressure

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Handbook of Research Methods in Cardiovascular Behavioral Medicine

Abstract

Arterial pressure is one of the most widely measured cardiovascular variables, but the ideal technique has yet to be developed. A number of methods have been described, all of which have their own advantages and disadvantages. Central to any consideration of these is an appreciation of the enormous variability of blood pressure: a single measurement of pressure made at a discrete point in time may have very little meaning. This is particularly relevant to behaviorally oriented studies, where the emphasis is commonly on the transient changes of pressure occurring in response to a behavioral challenge. Therefore, methods capable of taking multiple measurements over a relatively short space of time are desirable. Currently available methods are reviewed below.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Medicine, Cardiovascular Center, New York Hospital-Cornell Medical Center, New York, New York, 10021, USA

    Thomas G. Pickering & Seymour G. Blank

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  1. Thomas G. Pickering
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  2. Seymour G. Blank
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Editors and Affiliations

  1. University of Miami, Coral Gables, Florida, USA

    Neil Schneiderman

  2. National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, Bethesda, Maryland, USA

    Stephen M. Weiss  & Peter G. Kaufmann  & 

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Pickering, T.G., Blank, S.G. (1989). The Measurement of Blood Pressure. In: Schneiderman, N., Weiss, S.M., Kaufmann, P.G. (eds) Handbook of Research Methods in Cardiovascular Behavioral Medicine. The Springer Series in Behavioral Psychophysiology and Medicine. Springer, Boston, MA. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4899-0906-0_4

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4899-0906-0_4

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Boston, MA

  • Print ISBN: 978-1-4899-0908-4

  • Online ISBN: 978-1-4899-0906-0

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