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Background:When the upper arm (UA) is inaccessible or a standard-sized blood pressure (BP) cuff is unavailable, some healthcare workers use the forearm (FA) to measure BP with a mercury sphygmomanometer.Objective:The objective was to determine the accuracy of BP measurement in the arm and FA.Design:Prospective, randomized study.Setting:Department of Pediatrics, JNMC, Sawangi (Meghe)Participants:A total of 72 children aged 5–15 years.Measurements:Mercury and Automatic (OMRON Tokyo, 108-0075 Japan) BP measurements were recorded from the arm and FA at 2 min intervals.Results:In our study, 72 children of both sexes were enrolled. The mean age of the children was 10.13 ± 2.82 years, and 48% were females. Pearson's correlation coefficient between FA and UA systolic BP (SBP) measured by mercury was 0.782, and for diastolic BP (DBP) it was 0.824. Similarly, Pearson's correlation coefficient between FA and UA SBP measured with an automated device (OMRON) was 0.843, and for DBP it was 0.846. The average readings for the SBP and DBP were higher in the FA than in the UA by approximately 3 mmHg. There was a statistically significant difference in both SBP and DBP.Conclusions:The FA is an acceptable method of BP monitoring when the UA cannot be accessed. The pressure from FA is probably higher than it would be from UA.

Introduction: The mercury sphygmomanometer has been the gold standard used for obtaining blood pressure (BP). However, due to environmental concerns and more use of automated BP devices, an alternative to using the standard mercury sphygmomanometer to measure BP. The aim of this study is to evaluate the accuracy of the Automated (Omron) BP device against the mercury sphygmomanometer in children. Material and Methods: One hundred children were enrolled in this study. The accuracy of Omron HEM-7121 BP readings was compared with that of mercury BP device readings. Each children had four BP measurements recorded sequentially i.e. two valid systolic readings, and two valid diastolic readings. Results: BP taken with the automated device was systolic 109.77 ± 9.97 and diastolic 74.50 ± 8.32 mm Hg compared to systolic 112.68 ± 9.98 and diastolic 77.38 ± 7.91 mm Hg measured by manual mercury sphygmomanometer BP readings (p<0.001). Automated and mercury BP measurements were correlated (r = 0.89, systolic BP; r = 0.82, diastolic BP). Linear regression analysis showed that the automated systolic BP is a significant predictor (β = 0.897, p < 0.001) of manual systolic BP. Similarly, automated diastolic BP was also a significant predictor (β = 0.829, p< 0.001) of manual diastolic BP. Conclusion: This study concludes that the automated BP device is reliable and accurate for measuring the BP in children.

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