what is normal for blood pressure ?

[jamiesmom]

My dp went for a check up with the nurse at doctors surgery Thursday and was told he has dangerously high blood presure and asked to come back this morning, he went back and it's still realy high, 178/80. Does anyone knoe what is the normal blood presure for a male, 33 years old, non-smoker, who rarly drinks? He now has to go to see the doctor on Friday

[jampot]

I think a standard is 100 + your age (top number) over roughly half for the bottom figure

[foxinsocks]

I think it is anything under or around 120/80. I'm not a health expert though and only know this cos dh's bp is 140/90 so we have healthy eating plan etc. (though we eat healthily anyway).

[MummyToSteven]

sorry to hear that about your dp, jamiesmom. top end of normal is 140/90. bottom end of normal of is 120/70. a bit pants really that he couldn't see the doc today and has been left hanging till Friday.

[jamiesmom]

thanks for the quick responce, i thought it was around 120/80 but wasn't too sure, have to wait till friday now to see what the doctor says

[foxinsocks]

here's the blood pressure association page in case you want more info

blood pressure association

[strawberry]

According to NICE, people with a blood pressure over 140/90 should be assessed for other risk factors (eg. cholesterol). Those over 160/100 should be treated. Doctors are usually most concerned with the bottom number and your DH's is actually normal (ie. 80). But the top figure is quite high. Also some people find being at the doc's rather stressful and this makes their BP go artificially high. HTH

[unicorn]

jamiesmom.. sending my sympathies for your dp..

my dh has high blood pressure at the moment, he has been given some drugs to try and bring it down..
(he IS overweight, and does drink too much.. but Doctor said these factors AREN'T generally the cause)

Just make sure it is regularly monitored.

[lou33]

mine is generally 100/60, sometimes 110/60

[bundle]

jamiesmom, one reading is now regarded as inadequate and anxiety itself about the bp reading can push it up, so get the gp to take a few. also an ambulatory (24 hr) reading could be taken where you wear a gadget for a whole day, to rule out white coat hypertension (a friend of mine has this, it's quite common). they'll want to take a family history and look at diet etc (eg salt) and exercise, but don't panic, it's good that this has been picked up. x

[bundle]

(mine's usually 120/70 ish)

[Skate]

Standard text book BP is 120/80. Mines always lower at around 110/60, even when pregnant.

It's good it's been picked up though, that does seem quite high. Let us know how he gets on.

[popsycal]

that is pretty normal....at the high oend of normal but ok

[popsycal]

mine is 145/100 atm and i am off sick as i am pregnant

[Pidge]

popsycal - wish I could trade you some of my low blood pressure (85/50) I keep nearly keeling over every time I stand up. But am well aware that this is not a problem, and puts me in the lucky camp. Any prognosis on how long you'll be kept off work?

[popsycal]

hi pidge - i am off to the docs tomorrow or thurs (must double check). sick note runs out on monday (then have half term off). not sure what will happen after that.
i really cant face work - if it has settled, an hour inside that building will send it soaring again

[kid]

Pidge, I have the same as you. When pregnant with DS, my BP was 90/55
My dad has been checking his BP at home. His readings have been 155/104, 166/97, 160/97
He won't go Drs though. We even threatened to make an appt for him and we got told off by him!

[spacemonkey]

sorry to veer off topic but hello kid, how are you settling in after your house exchange?

[kid]

Hi Spacemonkey, we are loving it here. Shame about the weather as the garden isn't get used now! We are still doing the kitchen, started it just after moving in and still haven't finished 3 months on! Did do DD's room though and that is beautiful! How about you, missing your old house, any regrets? I don't have any, but then I only moved a couple of streets away!

[spacemonkey]

Glad you like your new home, I don't miss my old house at all, I like living in London very much, but am skint so haven't been able to do any decorating yet, still living with previous tenant's decor which isn't quite to my taste!

[October]

Message withdrawn

[kid]

the old tenants decoration can't be as bad as the doors that are here. We just haven't got round to sanding and painting them yet! They have that grain effect in white and grey on one side and then they are dark brown on the other, I like white doors! plus our passage looks like a cloudy sky!
(sorry for hijacking this thread)

[spacemonkey]

argh, sounds horrid

well it's just grubby here really, needs a good coat of white paint everywhere

and i still have boxes to unpack!

[Flossam]

The 100 + age thing is out of date now. 100-130/60-80 is most normal. But the focus is much more now on what is normal for the patient. If your husband has high blood pressure but there is no other cause for it (which should be checked out) then that is just his normal. It is most likely to be connected to high cholesterol though which can be treated with medication if changes to diet don't help. Let us know how he does!

[jamiesmom]

thank everyone, i'd got it wrong his blood pressure was 178/113. that will teach me to consentrait on 1 thing at a time and not 4 won't it!

bundle - the nurse took 4 readings on the 1st visit (the nurse thought the bp monitor had broke as it was so high) and then went back 5 days later and it was still high.

pidge - mine drop's to as low as 80/60 when i'm pregnant so i can't work or even go shopping alone as i pass out a lot. so your not alone

flossam - he's never had his bp took before and this was his first trip to the doctors in over 10 years! he only went now as we moved house 22 months ago and i made him go and get registered at my surgery. will let you know how he gets on friday.