New system offers more accurate blood pressure measurements

Traditionally, blood pressure is measured using the familiar inflatable cuff and stethoscope on the upper arm. While this method has sufficed for over a century, some people maintain that it is inaccurate – blood pressure in the arm is reportedly higher than at the heart, and not by a consistent, easily compensated-for amount. Because high blood pressure can cause the most damage at the heart and in the nearby brain, it would make sense to monitor it at the heart, too. That's just what a new device designed at the University of Leicester does ... in a roundabout way.

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