I am wondering if anyone has tried a blood pressure monitor watch ?
Obviously I do not expect them to be as accurate as an upper arm monitor but would consider trying one to use when out and about between regular monitoring.
Any comments gratefully received.
1 Like
@elljay1 hi & welcome to the community. Hope you are doing well.
I don’t have a blood pressure watch but do have a fitbit which measures things like my heart rate, sleep etc. I know they’re not completely accurate but it does at least give me an idea of how i am doing.
It is probably ok for checking if your BP is stable rather than confirming if you have higb or low BP.
Hopefully someone else will be along in a short while who has experience of using one of these watches that they can share with you.
Best wishes
Ann
1 Like
Thank you @Ann for your reply and the welcome.
I really should have introduced myself and said it’s my husband who had the stroke ( well tbh I had a Tia a few years ago too )
We still have a way to go and because the Stroke unit got covid which was flying around the bays hubby was discharged early to avoid it. First follow up next month, so 9 months on.
1 Like
as a tech nerd the issue is type, most of the ones coming through to end users measure the flow of blood using light sensors used to track heart rate, hrv, 02 etc… the samsaungs where very early in on this and there are some really good vids on youtube by a nordic scientest who tests this stuff against medical devices, the samsungs where a miss.
there are also few on wrist that actually do inflate and use that… but i have no idea how effective they are.
in terms of bp I tend to look at all this data on a long curve rather than through the lens of the right now which why the likes of the withing scawatch or similar can cause more issues than not and scare people into thinking they have abnormal heart issues…
In closing if you see a device you like please have a look for reviews in terms of tests vs medical devices for accuracy… you’ll find lots on youtube, my default whenb I’m intertested in a device tends to be the quantified scientist…
3 Likes
Welcome to the community @elljay1
I am a tech dinosaur and so avoid these gadgets. We always use the BP monitor that wraps around the arm. We have tried the wrist one (which does inflate) but it is not as accurate and so we stick with old faithful.
As @NckWhlr says, and I agree that it is better to look at BP data on a long curve rather than the right now lens. If I’m not mistaken, our GP asks us to take several readings and the submit 3 that are closest.
My view is stick with the old fashioned upper arm monitor, but if you like your gadgets then again Nick has offered sound advice imho.
Wishing you and your husband all the best.
Namaste|
Hi and a big welcome to our community. Sorry to hear of your husband’s stroke and I hope he is doing ok.
I have no personal experience of using a blood pressure monitor watch. Hopefully someone here will have experience of using one.
Best wishes to both of you.
Regards Sue
hi @ManjiB its also worth undersanding how these devices work even the over the counter traditional bp devices (arm or wrist) are not always that accurate hence the need to look at averages, I tend to take readings from both sides as each side can give a different reading and then average those reading over a week…
the watches are a different order of issues, where we need to understand how the sensors work, from what i have read to get a blood pressure reading the science calculates the blood flow, which they call the PTT or pulse transit time it assumes the sensor is on the wrist so calculates the speed/distance between heart beats. the samsung watch i was looking at also required callibration against a traditional devices so you really needed both for that one to work.
I’m not sure where I stand on the science at this point and at times it can come across as a gimick… especially if you also need a traditional monitor to maintain calibration.
2 Likes
Hi Nick - totally agree with all the points you make and averages are the way to go. Anything that is a snap shot in time is just a waste of time (unless it works in your favour 
).
The number of times we have had assessors come to check to see if my Mum can do something e.g. swallow, stand up, recognise things, blood pressure etc., only for Mum not to demonstrate or not reach the required standard is too many. Yet if those assessors had been with her on the days we see her do these very things they would have to accept there is potential or whatever.
I don’t try too hard to understand the mechanics or science these days, but go by gut feel or common sense if that makes sense and in the main it seems to work for me.
I suppose if you are in the industry of making money, then having or using gimmicks to differentiate yourself is one way to enter the market or become market leader.
2 Likes
I have been using an AKTIIA wrist band for a few months now after a TIA caused by a pressure spike. Tablets caused problems, so I thought it worth the cost, £200 iirc, to keep an eye on it. It is not a watch, purely a monitor, and is calibrated every month against a cuff. It takes a reading every 40 min and talks to the mobile phone, so I can get a graph at any time of the readings so far that day, and copy a log of any length of time at 40 min intervals. I find the pressure varies between 135 and 153 during the day, and if I see a steady increase I am to tell the GP.
2 Likes
Thanks to everyone for the replies, I am grateful for your input.
@GeoffT I hadn’t heard of this gadget so am off to look it up, could be just what we need.
It’s great to have a knowledgeable techie on here❤️
I personally still prefer the original BP monitors with the mercury readings😂 I suspect they’re more accurate. When my GP uses one, the readings are always lower than what I get on my monitor, and I’m now on my 3rd one. So it makes me wonder if the digital monitors are calibrated a bit too high. I’ve never taken mine with me to the surgery to check against the older type so maybe I should🤔
Trace
Hi @elljay1
I just wanted to welcome you to the community and I hope your husband and yourself are both doing well.
I’m pleased to see it looks like you’ve got some good answers here which I hope has helped.
If you need anything whilst you’re using the Online Community, please don’t hesitate to tag me using the @ symbol and my username.
Anna
Thank you for the warm welcome…
2 Likes
I have an arm BP device and check occasionally now (weekly ish). I know it’s not as accurate as some but i am looking for trends over time with the readings as unless they are calibrated regularly it should be seen as an indication, albeit some are quite accurate.
I take mine in the morning normally before getting up. During the day BP rises and falls naturally so i try to keep a standard check point for the data to be relevant to me. Gage R&R and all that for those who like data analysis etc.
2 Likes