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Blood Pressure Monitors Reviews
Updated December 2007
When evaluating home blood pressure monitors, it is important to consider both usability and accuracy. Considering the latter, the British Hypertension Society (BHS) produces internationally renowned guidelines for the management of hypertension. The BHS maintains lists of blood pressure monitors that have been tested using BHS protocols and have achieved a "passing grade" of B or better. We also found good comparative articles in a wide range of consumer publications and professional and medical journals. These include Australia's Choice magazine, London's Daily Mail newspaper, The Wall Street Journal, The American Journal of Hypertension and others. While Consumer Reports has covered blood pressure monitors, its coverage is outdated (nearly five years old). Electronic/digital blood pressure monitors for home use are either semiautomatic manual-inflation (you squeeze the bulb to inflate the cuff) or automatic-inflation. Automatic monitors have everything contained in one unit, so it's easier to handle than systems with a separate gauge and stethoscope. Most home blood pressure monitors are very portable and have a D-ring cuff for one-handed application. The cuff may fit around the wrist or arm. More expensive monitors have automatic inflation and deflation systems, along with large, easy-to-read digital displays and error indicators, reading printouts and built-in pulse (heart rate) measurement. Most home blood pressure monitors measure either at the upper
arm or wrist, though a few are also finger models. Experts such as the BHS
claim that those that measure pressure at the upper arm are best, as there
is too great a chance for error when blood pressure is measured elsewhere.
However, some users say that putting on an upper arm cuff can be difficult
-- so much so that the act itself raises blood pressure. In addition, an article
published in the American Journal of Hypertension evaluates 12 popular at-home
electronic monitors and finds only minor differences between them. It reports
that the wrist and finger models performed well when used precisely according
to the manufacturers' directions. We've also seen good user reports about
some -- but not all -- blood pressure monitors that measure at the wrist.
In the end, we couldn't find an overriding argument for or against wrist blood
pressure monitors over arm-cuff monitors, so it may come down to what you're
most comfortable using. We found good reviews for both types. Most reports say that fingertip blood pressure monitors do not give accurate readings, and should probably be avoided until the technology improves. ... Continued
Our Consensus Report shows how many times products are top-ranked by reviewers included in our
A&D Medical LifeSource and Omron blood pressure monitors score consistently well with reviewers, medical professionals and users. The A&D Medical LifeSource UA-767 (also sold as the UA-767V) is a bare-bones blood pressure monitor that scores highly for accuracy. Step up versions add speech output and a host of features. The A&D Medical LifeSource UA-787EJ is feature packed and well received and easy to use. A less expensive step-down version, the UA-787AC, is also available, and the original UA-787V can still be found at some retailers. While some experts say that wrist blood pressure monitors are less reliable than those that use an upper-arm cuff, the Omron HEM-637 has technology to help assure accuracy and has done well in reviews. Advertisement
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