Self-monitoring of blood pressure: a pilot study.

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the applicability of the sensory detection method (SDM) in patient self-monitoring of blood pressure. The SDM involves the use of a blood pressure cuff alone and represents an easy, simple blood pressure recording method. In a sample of 116 ambulatory patients visiting the Eastern Carolina Family Practice Center, only 59 percent of the patients were able to measure their systolic blood pressure, and 54 percent were able to measure diastolic blood pressure. Of those patients who could sense their blood pressure, no significant mean systolic difference between SDM and indirect method (IDM) was detected. Mean diastolic measurements were significantly different. The correlations between IDM and SDM systolic blood pressures and diastolic blood pressures suggested a moderate relationship. Further analysis suggested that education was positively related to ability to accurately measure blood pressure using SDM. No relationship was detected between obesity, age, sex, or ethnicity and ability to measure blood pressure.