Reading Your Monitor
This information is for educational purposes only and should not replace medical advice. Always talk to your healthcare provider for medical decisions.
Most Important Things to Know
Your blood pressure monitor measures the force of your blood. It shows how hard your blood pushes against your blood vessel walls.
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Your monitor shows:
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A top number (when your heart beats)
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A bottom number (when your heart relaxes)
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Your pulse (how fast your heart beats)
What You'll Learn on This Page:
How to Read a Blood Pressure Monitor
The blood pressure machine will usually show three numbers:
Top Number = Systolic or SYS
Bottom Number = Diastolic or DIA
Pul (often has a heart next to it and can be anywhere on the screen) = Pulse or How Fast Your Heart Is Beating
Image: Jacek Halicki, CC BY-SA 4.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0>, via Wikimedia Commons
Top Number (Systolic)
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Measures your blood pressure when your heart beats
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This is when your heart pushes blood into your body
Bottom Number (Diastolic)
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Measures your blood pressure when your heart rests
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This is when your heart is filling with blood
Pul (Pulse or Heart Rate)
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Measures how fast your heart is beating
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Your heart is sometimes slower or faster
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Some machines will show the fastest (max or maximum)
Written by:
Last Updated: January 16, 2025
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