How to Use a Manual Sphygmomanometer

A sphygmomanometer is a device used for measuring blood pressure. It comes from the Greek word sphygmos, meaning pulse, and manometer, which is a scientific term meaning pressure meter. The way it works is by inflating a cuff and constricting the flow of blood to the arm at heart level. When the cuff is slowly released, a stethoscope is used to determine when the pulse is first heard and when it stops being audible. There are two types of manual sphygmomanometers, mercury and aneroid. Mercury sphygmomanometers are used less and less due to concerns about mercury toxicity.

Things You'll Need

• Aneroid sphygmomanometer with inflatable cuff, pressure gauge and inflation bulb
• Stethoscope

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Instructions

• 1

  Instruct the patient to sit or lie down in a comfortable position. The patient's arm should be bare and free of any restrictive clothing. If sitting, have the patient rest his arm on a smooth surface at heart level.

• 2

  Palm up makes it easier to locate the brachial artery.

  Have the patient relax her arm in a slightly flexed position with the palm facing up. She should sit or lie comfortably and quietly with legs uncrossed.

• 3

  Wrap the cuff snugly but not uncomfortably around the patient's arm. Position so that the lower part of the cuff is approximately 1 inch above the inner bend of the elbow and place the center over the brachial artery, which is in the crook of the elbow.

• 4

  Make sure the gauge is easy to read while taking blood pressure.

  Place the gauge so that it can be easily read.

• 5

  Put the stethoscope ear pieces in your ears and place the other end of the stethoscope over the patient's brachial pulse, which is located on the inside of the patient's upper arm near the elbow.

• 6

  Tighten the valve connected to the bulb and inflate the bulb rapidly until the gauge reads 200 mm.

• 7

  Slowly loosen the valve to allow the cuff to deflate gradually. While watching the pressure fall, listen carefully for the first audible sound of a heartbeat or pulse through the stethoscope. As soon as you hear it, that is the systolic blood pressure.

• 8

  Continue to listen carefully while the cuff deflates. Note when the pulse or heartbeat is no longer audible. That is the diastolic blood pressure. Once you have the diastolic pressure, you can completely open the valve and let the remaining air out of the cuff.

  Write down the blood pressure as systolic pressure over diastolic pressure -- for example, 120/80.