Blood Pressure Monitoring
What is ambulatory blood pressure monitoring?
What is ambulatory blood pressure monitoring?
Ambulatory blood pressure monitoring provides your doctor with detailed information about what’s happening with your blood pressure.
If you have suspected high blood pressure (hypertension) or your high blood pressure is difficult to manage with medication, ambulatory blood pressure monitoring (ABPM) will provide your doctor with more detailed information about what’s happening. Some people get nervous when they visit their doctor, which can cause their blood pressure to rise temporarily. For these people ABPM can be used to accurately measure blood pressure in a more usual environment.
What to expect with ambulatory blood pressure monitoring
ABPM is simply a portable blood pressure machine that you wear for 24 hours. There’s a small computer device you wear on a belt or around your neck. It is attached to a blood pressure cuff wrapped around your upper arm, just like when your doctor checks you blood pressure.
At regular, preset intervals the computer inflates the cuff around your arm to measure your blood pressure as you go about your daily routine.
The same computer stores the measurements so they can be analysed by your cardiologist later.
It only takes approximately 15-30 minutes for one of our technicians to fit the ABPM device and even less to remove it the next day.
The technician may ask you to keep a written record of any symptoms you experience during the recording period.
What do I need to know on the day of the test?
- It is recommended that you bath/shower in the morning, as depending on the type of device, you may not be able to swim/shower whilst the monitor is being worn.
- Please wear a 2 piece outfit
- You will provided with a blood pressure monitoring diary to track your symptoms at specific time intervals
How do I connect to the device?
- Connecting to the device requires that a blood pressure cuff be placed on your upper arm and a small recording device be worn across the shoulder or around the waist.
- During the period of monitoring, should you have difficulties with the equipment or feel it may have been dislodged, please notify your centre.
What happens after the test?
- The equipment and symptom diary must be returned at the specified time.
- A full report will be sent to your Doctor after the results have been reviewed by a Cardiologist.
How do I book an appointment?
If you have a referral from your doctor, click here to find your closest centre.
This information is of a general nature. If you are concerned about your heart health, discuss this with your local doctor.