Managing blood pressure (BP) at home

Get help with understanding what normal, low and high blood pressure is. Blood Pressure UK have a helpful page on understanding what the numbers mean. This page includes a video which may also help you understand.

Learn how to measure your blood pressure at home. Blood Pressure UK have helpful information on how to measure your blood pressure at home. This page includes a video which may also help you understand.

The British Heart Foundation (BHF) has a wide range of tools and information available to support patients learn about their blood pressure. These resources can be found on their manage your blood pressure at home hub.

There are a number of places you can purchase a blood pressure monitor. You can see these on the British Heart Foundation online shop.

There are a variety of low-cost blood pressure monitors available that patients can buy to use at home.

If you are buying a blood pressure monitor, make sure it is approved for use in the UK.

To make sure your monitor is accurate, choose one that has been listed as validated for accuracy by the British and Irish Hypertension Society (BIHS).

It is important to check that your machine is approved for use in the UK and your heart condition.

If you have an irregular heartbeat, not all blood pressure machines can detect this, and the reading may not be accurate. We can help check this for you and advise you further.

We recommend a blood pressure machine with an upper arm cuff, not a wrist cuff to ensure accurate readings.

To make sure your monitor is accurate, choose one that has been listed as validated for accuracy by the British and Irish Hypertension Society (BIHS). There are a number of places you can purchase a blood pressure monitor including the British Heart Foundation online shop.

If your machine is not suitable or you would like to borrow one of our validated machines we can arrange this for you. Contact your Leeds Community cardiac nurse specialist for further information.