Arterial pressure and the Korotkov method

Arterial pressure is an indicator that every person, regardless of age, must constantly monitor. The general state of human health, as well as the course of various diseases, depend on its values. To a large extent, the pressure in the blood vessels also affects the state of various internal organs.

Arterial pressure: the need for measurements

High or low blood pressure can eventually become the cause of the occurrence and development of serious diseases that lead to unpleasant consequences. If the deviation from the norm has acquired a stable character, it is necessary to urgently consult a doctor and eliminate the problem. So, if you ignore elevated indicators, over time, not only heart disease, but also kidney or eye disease may develop.

In medical practice, it is customary to call arterial pressure the force with which blood creates pressure in blood vessels. If you consider the question from the point of view of physics, then the pressure in the human body exceeds atmospheric pressure. In medicine, there are several types of pressure.

Diastolic (or lower)

Diastolic pressure is the minimum pressure that occurs during relaxation of the heart muscle. This is the lower indicator in a pair of numbers, which indicate the value of blood pressure after measurement. The presence of this number is related to the biological structure of the heart muscle of a person and the shortened cycle.

The cycle consists of three phases: atrial systole and ventricular systole, and then diastole. The last stage is precisely the relaxation, in honor of which the type of blood pressure was named. Its value shows the resistance of peripheral blood vessels that are minimal in size.

Systolic pressure (or upper)

Systole is the phase of heart contraction during which blood is ejected into the artery. This moment becomes the maximum - systolic pressure, that is, the top number in the indicators. To a large extent, the mark depends on the state of health of the heart muscle, since ideally it should contract quickly and often. It is also affected by the state of blood vessels.

Indicator of normal pressure

In medical practice, it is customary to consider indicators of 110/70 as normal blood pressure - this is suitable for an adult person in good general health. There should be a difference of at least 30-40 units between diastolic and systolic pressure.

Korotkov's unique discovery

Nikolay Korotkov was largely the author of modern methods of blood pressure measurement. He worked for a very long time in the late XNUMXth and early XNUMXth centuries as a doctor at the front, where he often had to face the need to amputate a limb in order to stop severe bleeding.

He resorted to the method of listening to blood vessels, which became the impetus for understanding the nature of pressure measurement. According to Korotkov's observations, short tones during measurements indicate the maximum pressure mark. After the sounds disappear, minimum values are fixed: this means that the pulse wave passes freely.

Korotkov's method is still the basis of design and use tonometers of any type: both mechanical and automatic. Dull sounds heard during measurements were called Korotkov tones.