About this Resource
Measuring blood pressure at home is a reliable and practical way to monitor any changes in blood pressure levels. There is some evidence to suggest the act of self monitoring itself can promote lower readings over time. This is possibly due to increased awareness of blood pressure levels leading to sustained behavioural changes. This handout outlines how to choose a blood pressure monitoring device, how to take a reading, and how to track changes in blood pressure over time.
Grounded in the Research
“Self-monitoring of hypertension has been proposed as a method for reducing blood pressure over and above standard care by increasing the involvement of individuals in their own treatment and therefore aiming to increase adherence, reduce clinical inertia, and provide patients and professionals with common information about the efficacy of treatment.”
Excerpt from: Bray, E. P., Holder, R., Mant, J., & McManus, R. J. (2010). Does self-monitoring reduce blood pressure? Meta-analysis with meta-regression of randomized controlled trials. Annals of Medicine, 42(5), 371-386.
References
[1] Stergiou, G. S., Kario, K., Kollias, A., McManus, R. J., Ohkubo, T., Parati, G., & Imai, Y. (2018). Home blood pressure monitoring in the 21st century. The Journal of Clinical Hypertension, 20(7), 1116-1121. https://doi.org/10.1111/jch.13284
[2] Uhlig, K., Patel, K., Ip, S., Kitsios, G. D., & Balk, E. M. (2013). Self-measured blood pressure monitoring in the management of hypertension: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Annals of Internal Medicine, 159(3), 185-194.
https://doi.org/10.7326/0003-4819-159-3-201308060-00008
[3] Whelton PK, Carey RM, Aronow WS, Casey DE Jr, Collins KJ, … Wright JT Jr. (2017) ACC/AHA/AAPA/ABC/ACPM/AGS/APhA/ASH/ASPC/NMA/PCNA Guideline for the Prevention, Detection, Evaluation, and Management of High Blood Pressure in Adults: A Report of the American College of Cardiology/American Heart Association Task Force on Clinical Practice Guidelines. Hypertension. 2018 Jun;71(6):e13-e115. https://doi.org/10.1161/HYP.0000000000000065
[4] George, J., & MacDonald, T. (2015). Home blood pressure monitoring. European Cardiology Review, 10(2), 95.
https://doi.org/10.15420%2Fecr.2015.10.2.95
[5] Parati, G., Stergiou, G. S., Asmar, R., Bilo, G., De Leeuw, P., Imai, Y., … & ESH Working Group on Blood Pressure Monitoring. (2008). European Society of Hypertension guidelines for blood pressure monitoring at home: a summary report of the Second International Consensus Conference on Home Blood Pressure Monitoring. Journal of Hypertension, 26(8), 1505-1526. https://doi.org/10.1097/hjh.0b013e328308da66