Comparison of the oscillometric blood pressure monitor... : Blood Pressure Monitoring (original) (raw)

Devices and Technology

Comparison of the oscillometric blood pressure monitor (BPM-100 Beta ) with the auscultatory mercury sphygmomanometer

a Department of Pharmacology & Therapeutics and b Department of Medicine, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada.

Correspondence and requests for reprints to James M. Wright, MD, PhD, FRCP(C), Department of Pharmacology & Therapeutics and Department of Medicine, The University of British Columbia, 2176 Health Sciences Mall, Vancouver, BC, Canada, V6T 1Z3. Tel: +1 604 822-4270; fax: +1 604 822-0701; email: [email protected]

Received 18 December 2000

Revised 13 February 2001

Accepted 25 April 2001

Sponsorship: VSM – MedTech.

Abstract

Background

To compare directly the accuracy of the BPM-100 Beta monitor (an automated oscillometric blood pressure device) with standard auscultatory mercury sphygmomanometry.

Design

The BPM-100 Beta was connected in parallel via a T-tube to a mercury sphygmomanometer. The BPM-100 Beta and two trained observers (blinded from each other and from the BPM-100 Beta ) measured the sitting blood pressure simultaneously.

Methods

Means, standard deviations and ranges were calculated for all the demographic data: age, arm size, heart rate and blood pressure. The agreement between the BPM-100 Beta and the mean of two observers (the reference) was determined and expressed as the mean ± SD, as well as the percentage of differences falling within 5, 10 and 15 mmHg.

Results

Of the 92 subjects recruited, 85 (92.4%) met the inclusion criteria, and 391 sets of sitting blood pressure and heart rate measurements were available for analysis. The mean difference between the BPM-100 Beta monitor and the reference was –0.62 ± 6.96 mmHg for systolic blood pressure, –1.48 ± 4.80 mmHg for diastolic blood pressure and 0.14 ± 1.86 beats/min for heart rate. The only limitation of the device was its tendency to underestimate higher systolic blood pressures. This problem has been addressed by a minor change in the algorithm (see the companion publication, Blood Press Monit, 6, 161–165, 2001).

Conclusion

The BPM-100 Beta is an accurate blood pressure monitor for the office setting, meeting all requirements of the Association for the Advancement of Medical Instrumentation and achieving an ‘A’ grade according to the British Hypertension Society protocol.