Understanding Blood Pressure Readings

Blood pressure is measured using two readings. One is called Systolic blood pressure and the other is called Diastolic blood pressure. In order to understand blood pressure numbers we need to know the meaning of Systolic and Diastolic.

What is Systolic Blood Pressure?

Imagine you are clenching your fist. Do you notice the tension or pressure caused by doing that? Now imagine your heart doing the same to itself. This is your heart doing what is called contracting and the pressure that the contraction of your heart causes is referred to as Systolic pressure.

When systolic pressure occurs, the heart is actually pushing or pumping the blood to all parts of your body. Now, the force with which this blood is pumped is measured using a blood pressure monitor. So, with the aid of and automatic blood pressure monitor, we can tell what our Systolic blood pressure.

What is isolated high systolic blood pressure?

Isolated high systolic blood pressure is when the high systolic pressure is 140 mmHG plus but the diastolic pressure level remains closer to normal. Isolated systolic hypertension (ISH) is the most common form of hign blood pressure in the US and UK.

What is Diastolic Blood Pressure?

Let’s stick with the ‘clenched fist’ analogy. Imagine you have unclenched your fist. Do you notice the tension or pressure has eased off? Now imagine your heart doing the same to itself. This is your heart doing what is called relaxing or resting. Of course, there is now less pressure. Hence, Systolic reading is always higher compared to Diastolic reading. The blood pressure monitor is a clever device for noting the blood pressure value at which your heart was at resting state. This blood pressure reading is called Diastolic blood pressure.

Blood pressure test for hypertension involve checking the systolic level and hence it is referred to as the hypertension number. High diastolic blood pressure risks heart attacks, strokes and kidney failure. High diastolic pressure decreases but systolic blood pressure increases with age. So, as you get older, it is the systolic blood pressure that is of greater significance. Kidney Failure and High Blood Pressure A high systolic blood pressure increases the chance for heart attacks, strokes, and kidney failure. A doctor relies on both systolic and diastolic blood pressure readings to determine a patients blood pressure category. According to US RDS 2005 (published in 2007) data for primary cause of kidney failure, almost 27% of the cases were due to high blood pressure.

So, ‘Pump and Rest’ or ‘Systolic and Diastolic’? Whichever you prefer, your blood pressure understanding should be more clear now.