checking blood pressureI have a history of borderline hypertension (high blood pressure) dating back to college. For a long time, I thought that was just my normal baseline until this week when I started taking my blood pressure at home and realized that I have a serious case of “white-coat hypertension.” Unlike my measurements at the doctor’s office which puts me at hypertension stage I, my readings at home are in the normal/desireable range.

Dr. Vincent Moloney at Blood Pressure, A Doctor’s Practical Guide With Insider’s Tips says:

Excellent studies using intra-arterial measurements have shown that more than 25% of people who have elevations when someone else takes their blood pressure actually have a false elevation. This error averaged 27 mm of Hg. Twenty-seven! Enough to easily cause you to have a false diagnosis or if you have a true elevation, too much treatment. This false elevation, called “white-coat hypertension”, disappears when you take it yourself.

If you’ve ever been told you have high blood pressure, get a monitor and check it at home. I was amazed at the difference in my blood pressure. Never again will I worry when my blood pressure shoots up at the doctor’s office! (Although the hypochondriac in me rather enjoyed the attention!)