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How To Monitor Blood Pressure Without Raising It
Does anyone actually enjoy the sensation of being squeezed by a blood pressure cuff? Well, as Mom used to say, it takes all kinds. For those who find the feeling nearly faint-inducing, take heart: researchers at UC San Diego have created a non-invasive medical wearable with a suite of sensors that can measure blood pressure and monitor multiple biochemicals at the same time.
The device is a small, flexible patch that adheres to the skin. So how does it manage to measure blood pressure without causing discomfort? The blood pressure sensor consists of eight customized piezoelectric transducers that bounce ultrasonic waves off the near and far walls of the artery. Then the sensor calculates the time of flight of the resulting echoes to gauge arterial dilation and contraction, which amounts to a blood pressure reading.
This patch also has a chemical sensor that uses a drug called pilocarpine to induce the skin to sweat, and then measures the levels of lactate, caffeine, and alcohol found within. To monitor glucose levels, a mild current stimulates the release of interstitial fluid — the stuff surrounding our cells that's rife with glucose, salt, fatty acids, and a few minerals. This is how continuous glucose monitoring for diabetes patients works today. You can check out the team's research paper for more details on the patch and its sensors.
In the future, the engineers are hoping to add even more sensors and develop a wireless version that doesn't require external power. Either way, it looks much more comfortable and convenient than current methods.
Blood Pressure
Continuous blood pressure monitoring has always been a major challenge for the biohacking community. Those giant arm cuffs aren't exactly the kind of thing you want to wear all day and the wrist monitors aren't super great either. So, [Kaan] and his research team set out to create a better continuous blood pressure monitor. This time as a ring.
When your heart beats, the volume of blood in the blood vessels increases ever so slightly. This increase in volume results in a decrease in electrical impedance because blood is fairly conductive. We've seen a similar volume measurement using light for detecting heart rate, but [Kaan] says with impedance, you won't need to worry about the effect of skin tone on the accuracy of the measurement.
As far as the hardware is concerned, they inject a small, constant 10 kHz sinusoidal current into the finger through 2 current-injecting electrodes, and then measure the resulting voltage drop across the finger with two sensing electrodes, a standard 4-probe Kelvin approach. Their results seem pretty good. They are within 5.27 millimeters of mercury (mmHg) of the gold standard for systolic blood pressure and 3.87 mmHg for diastolic blood pressure across 10 subjects, which they say are within the American Association for the Advancement of Medical Instrumentation's (AAMI) guidelines. That's definitely something to catch your attention.
We've seen several attempts to measure blood pressure using the analogous photoplethysmography technique, but those generally don't seem to work out. Will the impedance plethysmography approach overcome the optical technique's shortcomings? Only time will tell.
Best Blood Pressure Monitors For 2024
When considering buying a blood pressure monitor for home use, look into the following factors.
AccuracyOne of the most important aspects of a blood pressure monitor is its ability to provide consistently accurate readings. Look for the following three phrases in product descriptions when trying to determine the accuracy of the monitor:
Many blood pressure monitors offer an averaging feature as well with the goal of providing an accurate depiction of your blood pressure. The devices often take three consecutive readings and average them together, accounting for any variability and giving you a single, more accurate data set.
User error can also impact accuracy significantly, so be sure to follow the product instructions exactly as they are written.
Data StorageMany people use blood pressure monitor devices to track their blood pressure readings over time, in which case data storage of previous readings comes in handy. Some devices only store around 30 readings while others can store as many as 2,000, so think about your storage needs before purchasing a monitor.
What's more, lots of monitors sync with smartphone apps that can then provide additional data storage outside of the device itself. If you're tech savvy and like the idea of having your blood pressure information at your fingertips to share with your physician, consider a Bluetooth-compatible monitor with app-based data storage.
Lastly, some blood pressure monitors only store data for one user while others support data storage for multiple users. If you plan on sharing your blood pressure monitor with another member of your household, look into the number of users the device can support.
DisplayDisplay is another important factor, especially for older adults with vision impairments. Look for a blood pressure monitor device with a clear, simple and easy-to-read display screen to prevent misunderstanding your blood pressure readings. If your vision is highly compromised, some devices offer audio readouts as well.
UsabilityA blood pressure monitor won't be helpful (and you probably won't use it very often) if it doesn't feel intuitive. Consider the way the monitor lays out information, where buttons are placed, how easy it is to place the cuff correctly on your arm and whether those details feel natural to you.
Special FeaturesBeyond the basics listed above, some blood pressure monitors include special features, such as:
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