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  What is Blood Pressure  

Q) Could you explain me what is systopic, diastolic blood pressure and the numbers in the blood pressure readings.

A) Blood pressure (BP) is the force exerted by the blood on the walls of the artery (blood vessels carrying blood away from the heart).

The contraction of the heart pumps blood through the blood vessels. The pressure of the blood on the arterial walls is greater, each times the heart contracts and is known as the systolic pressure. The diastolic pressure is the pressure during the resting phase between contractions, and is lower than the systolic pressure. The blood pressure (systolic and diastolic) is measured by an apparatus known as the sphygmomanometer. It is measured in millimeters of mercury (mmHg). Normal blood pressure is 120/80 mmHg, where 120 denotes the systolic pressure and 80 denotes the diastolic pressure. High blood pressure is known as hypertension and is defined as a BP greater than 140 mmHg systolic or greater than 90 mmHg diastolic.

 

 

 
 
 

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