title: A new double cuff sphygmotonometer for accurate blood pressure measurement.
abstract: Accurate measurement of blood pressure (BP) is essential in the diagnosis and treatment of hypertension, but neither auscultatory nor oscillometric methods measure intra-arterial BP accurately in all circumstances. Algorithms for automatic BP-measuring devices differ from manufacturer to manufacturer, and no clear authorized algorithm criteria have yet been established. We have devised a double-cuff sphygmotonometer to measure BP on the basis of clear algorithms, and investigated the accuracy of this new method by comparing it with the photo-oscillometric method, which is the most accurate method for non-invasive measurement of intra-arterial BP. In the new method, a small cuff (3x6 cm) replaces the photo-sensor in the brachial cuff (13x24 cm) of the photo-oscillometric device, and BP is determined by means of the oscillation within the small cuff. The comparison based on procedures of AAMI-protocol was performed in 136 hypertensive patients and 54 normotensive subjects. The difference in systolic BP between the photooscillometric and double-cuff methods was -2.26+/-2.31 mmHg (89% under 5 mmHg), and the corresponding difference in diastolic BP was 1.9+/-2.50 mmHg (94% under 5 mmHg). In conclusion, we have devised a new double-cuff method which improves on the photo-oscillometric method, and although it seems to be less accurate than the photo-oscillometric method, the clarity of its algorithm makes it superior to the conventional oscillometric and auscultatory methods employing only one cuff.
authors.affiliation: Department of Public Health, Yokohama City University School of Medicine, Japan.
authors.forename: O
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Tochikubo
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Watanabe
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Hanada
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Miyajima
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Kimura
mesh_terms: D000465:Algorithms; D001314:Auscultation; D001795:Blood Pressure Determination / Q000379:methods / Q000592:standards; D004867:Equipment Design; D006801:Humans; D009991:Oscillometry; D010783:Photometry; D019722:Sphygmomanometers / Q000592:standards*