Is it true that if you subtract the
difference between the top number in your
blood pressure and the bottom number, the
remaining number is important? for
example:
if your blood pressure is 120/80, subtract
120-80=40 is the number 40 a significant
number? What if that number is 20 or 50?
for example if your blood pressure is
96/77; 96-77=19
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Users who thank DoctorQuestion for this post:
Kathealth
The difference between systolic and
diastolic pressure is called pulse
pressure.
Pulse pressure has diagnostic value only
if it is used together with other data
(systolic and diastolic pressure, heart
rate etc.). Used alone it can cause
confusion. For example, a person with a
blood pressure of 120/80 mmHg and a person
with a blood pressure of 140/100 have the
same values for the pulse pressure (40
mmHg) but their conditions are completely
different: the first person has a normal
blood pressure and the second one has
hypertension which requires treatment.
Certain conditions (aortic valve
disorders, severe anemia and
hyperthyroidism) can increase your pulse
pressure. The most important cause of
elevated pulse pressure is stiffness and
reduced elasticity of the aorta, the
largest artery in the body. This may be
due to high blood pressure or fatty
deposits on the walls of the arteries
(atherosclerosis). As the pulse pressure
is higher, the stiffer and more damaged
the vessels are thought to be. Pulse
pressure can be used for choosing proper
medication for treating high blood
pressure because different medicines act
differently on the pulse pressure.
If the usual resting pulse pressure is
measured as less than 40 mmHg, the most
common reason is an error of measurement.
If the pulse pressure is genuinely low,
e.g. 25 mmHg or less, the cause may be low
stroke volume, as in congestive heart
failure and/or shock, a serious issue.
This interpretation is reinforced if the
resting heart rate is relatively rapid,
e.g. 100-120 (in sinus tachycardia),
reflecting increased sympathetic nervous
system activity and the body's response to
low stroke volume and low cardiac output.
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Users who thank DoctorAnswer for this post:
Kathealth
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This page was last updated on June 11, 2008
