Digital blood pressure in patients with peripheral arterial disease.

Abstract

Reproducibility of indirect measurements of systolic blood pressure at ankle and toes by means of the strain gauge technique has been assessed in 20 patients with peripheral arterial disease. S.D difp between first and second determinations in double measurements lies between 4 and 6 mm Hg. The variation in gradient arm-leg was a little higher (S.D.difp about 7 mm Hg). In spite of very accurate procedure, day-to-day variation was between 7 and 10 mm Hg according to both distal pressures and arm-leg gradients. No difference in reproducibility was demonstrated, when patients with very low distal pressures and patients with moderately reduced pressures were compared. During measurements on a tilt table in several positions, it was demonstrated in 5 patients with severe peripheral arterial disease that the measured systolic toe blood pressures in the different positions deviated only a few mm Hg from the expected blood pressures, calculated from the changes in hydrostatic levels of arm and toe, and the change...