Indirect auscultatory blood pressure measurement at two sites in the arm

The purpose of this research was to describe and compare indirect auscultatory blood pressure measurement at the forearm site with values obtained at the traditional upper arm site. The forearm site has been suggested as an alternative site for more accurate measurement of blood pressure in obese patients. This study explores differences in data obtained at the two sites on 98 female subjects, aged 18 to 25 years, with nonobese arms and without history of cardiovascular-renal disease. Data were analyzed using a paired t test (p less than .05). Results indicate that statistically significant differences exist between the sites based on the lower systolic values and higher diastolic values obtained at the forearm site. Additional study is recommended to further clarify differences and to include obese subjects.