Measuring blood pressure

"Phil P." wrote in
:


"Ken Knecht" wrote in message
...
My vet has me medicating my cat for high blood pressure
($$$$$!).

Seriously, has anyone adapted a regular BP cuff for a cat?
The vet says if I can alter the cuff, I can measure under
the base of her tail. I've played with the cuff but don't
see a practical way to make it small enough.

Can't be done. I've tried them all. Human BP monitors just
don't work on cats. You need a Parks 811-B or 812 Doppler
ultrasound flow monitor with a flat infant probe, manometer,
and a few 2-3 cm infant cuffs. The disposable cuffs are
cheap (~$7) and can be reused several times without a
problem. The regular cuffs cost about $20 but they have
latex bladders that don't last very long. Three disposable
cuffs last a lot longer than one regular cuff.

The 811-B isn't very expensive - costs about $600 and comes
with a choice of probes. For a cat, you'll want the flat
infant probe. You should probably order a spare probe -
probes are cheap ~$100. The probe is used in place of the
stethoscope. I have an 811-B and and a 812 only because I
didn't know about the 812 when I bought the 811-B. The 812
has a recorder output that I can connect to the input of my
electrocardiograph so I can chart the Doppler signal and
have a permanent record.

Cuff fit and placement are very important. If the cuff
doesn't fit right, the readings are useless. Cuffs that are
too wide will falsely lower BPM and cuffs that are too small
will falsely increase BPM. You should take at least 5
measurements to assure the measurements are accurate. Its
important to place the cuff in the same place every time --
different positions will yield different readings.

Other than the cuffs, the only other piece of equipment
you'll need to buy separately is a sphygmomanometer. Parks
carries an excellent German made Proper manometer for about
$100. So you could be up and running for about $750. Then
all you'll need is a whole lot of practice and ideally, a
vet to show you the basics.

At-home BP measurements are almost always more accurate than
in-clinic measurements. The "white coat effect" at the
clinic can wreak havoc on BP. At the clinic, the cat needs
about 15-30 minutes in a quite room to become acclimated and
calm down.

Give Parks a call, they're very helpful and will answer all
your questions
and even walk you through your first few measurements.
Here's their number: 800-547-6427.

The 811-Bs are so inexpensive and easy to learn and use that
every vet should include BP measurements as part of every
routine exam.


I'd like to monitor the dosage as I do my own.

Please don't make any adjustments in your cat's dosage based
on your BP measurements without consulting your vet first.

Good Luck.

Phil.




Thanks for the info. I don't know what the vet uses. Digital and
it automatically makes a series of measurements. The cuff goes on
the cat's foreleg. She charges $25 for a series of four
measurements.

Ken


--
Untie the two knots to email me

"Phil P." wrote in
:


"Ken Knecht" wrote in message
...
My vet has me medicating my cat for high blood pressure
($$$$$!).

Seriously, has anyone adapted a regular BP cuff for a cat?
The vet says if I can alter the cuff, I can measure under
the base of her tail. I've played with the cuff but don't
see a practical way to make it small enough.

Can't be done. I've tried them all. Human BP monitors just
don't work on cats. You need a Parks 811-B or 812 Doppler
ultrasound flow monitor with a flat infant probe, manometer,
and a few 2-3 cm infant cuffs. The disposable cuffs are
cheap (~$7) and can be reused several times without a
problem. The regular cuffs cost about $20 but they have
latex bladders that don't last very long. Three disposable
cuffs last a lot longer than one regular cuff.

The 811-B isn't very expensive - costs about $600 and comes
with a choice of probes. For a cat, you'll want the flat
infant probe. You should probably order a spare probe -
probes are cheap ~$100. The probe is used in place of the
stethoscope. I have an 811-B and and a 812 only because I
didn't know about the 812 when I bought the 811-B. The 812
has a recorder output that I can connect to the input of my
electrocardiograph so I can chart the Doppler signal and
have a permanent record.

Cuff fit and placement are very important. If the cuff
doesn't fit right, the readings are useless. Cuffs that are
too wide will falsely lower BPM and cuffs that are too small
will falsely increase BPM. You should take at least 5
measurements to assure the measurements are accurate. Its
important to place the cuff in the same place every time --
different positions will yield different readings.

Other than the cuffs, the only other piece of equipment
you'll need to buy separately is a sphygmomanometer. Parks
carries an excellent German made Proper manometer for about
$100. So you could be up and running for about $750. Then
all you'll need is a whole lot of practice and ideally, a
vet to show you the basics.

At-home BP measurements are almost always more accurate than
in-clinic measurements. The "white coat effect" at the
clinic can wreak havoc on BP. At the clinic, the cat needs
about 15-30 minutes in a quite room to become acclimated and
calm down.

Give Parks a call, they're very helpful and will answer all
your questions
and even walk you through your first few measurements.
Here's their number: 800-547-6427.

The 811-Bs are so inexpensive and easy to learn and use that
every vet should include BP measurements as part of every
routine exam.


I'd like to monitor the dosage as I do my own.

Please don't make any adjustments in your cat's dosage based
on your BP measurements without consulting your vet first.

Good Luck.

Phil.




Thanks for the info. I don't know what the vet uses. Digital and
it automatically makes a series of measurements. The cuff goes on
the cat's foreleg. She charges $25 for a series of four
measurements.

Ken


--
Untie the two knots to email me

"Phil P." wrote in
:


"Ken Knecht" wrote in message
...
My vet has me medicating my cat for high blood pressure
($$$$$!).

Seriously, has anyone adapted a regular BP cuff for a cat?
The vet says if I can alter the cuff, I can measure under
the base of her tail. I've played with the cuff but don't
see a practical way to make it small enough.

Can't be done. I've tried them all. Human BP monitors just
don't work on cats. You need a Parks 811-B or 812 Doppler
ultrasound flow monitor with a flat infant probe, manometer,
and a few 2-3 cm infant cuffs. The disposable cuffs are
cheap (~$7) and can be reused several times without a
problem. The regular cuffs cost about $20 but they have
latex bladders that don't last very long. Three disposable
cuffs last a lot longer than one regular cuff.

The 811-B isn't very expensive - costs about $600 and comes
with a choice of probes. For a cat, you'll want the flat
infant probe. You should probably order a spare probe -
probes are cheap ~$100. The probe is used in place of the
stethoscope. I have an 811-B and and a 812 only because I
didn't know about the 812 when I bought the 811-B. The 812
has a recorder output that I can connect to the input of my
electrocardiograph so I can chart the Doppler signal and
have a permanent record.

Cuff fit and placement are very important. If the cuff
doesn't fit right, the readings are useless. Cuffs that are
too wide will falsely lower BPM and cuffs that are too small
will falsely increase BPM. You should take at least 5
measurements to assure the measurements are accurate. Its
important to place the cuff in the same place every time --
different positions will yield different readings.

Other than the cuffs, the only other piece of equipment
you'll need to buy separately is a sphygmomanometer. Parks
carries an excellent German made Proper manometer for about
$100. So you could be up and running for about $750. Then
all you'll need is a whole lot of practice and ideally, a
vet to show you the basics.

At-home BP measurements are almost always more accurate than
in-clinic measurements. The "white coat effect" at the
clinic can wreak havoc on BP. At the clinic, the cat needs
about 15-30 minutes in a quite room to become acclimated and
calm down.

Give Parks a call, they're very helpful and will answer all
your questions
and even walk you through your first few measurements.
Here's their number: 800-547-6427.

The 811-Bs are so inexpensive and easy to learn and use that
every vet should include BP measurements as part of every
routine exam.


I'd like to monitor the dosage as I do my own.

Please don't make any adjustments in your cat's dosage based
on your BP measurements without consulting your vet first.

Good Luck.

Phil.




Thanks for the info. I don't know what the vet uses. Digital and
it automatically makes a series of measurements. The cuff goes on
the cat's foreleg. She charges $25 for a series of four
measurements.

Ken


--
Untie the two knots to email me