Is a blood pressure of 65/46 good or bad?
You may be wondering if a blood pressure of 65/46 is considered good or bad or if it's too high, too low, or normal.
According to the American Heart Association, a blood pressure reading of 65/46 would be considered low blood pressure (hypotension). Low blood pressure, or hypotension, is defined by a systolic reading (the top number) of less than 90 and a diastolic reading (the bottom number) of less than 60. Low blood pressure generally isn't considered an issue unless it causes symptoms (such as dizziness, light-headedness, or fainting) or unless it drops suddenly.
What is a good blood pressure reading?
According to the American Heart Association, a normal blood pressure reading is lower than 120/80. While there is no specific number for low blood pressure, most experts say blood pressure is too low when it causes symptoms or drops suddenly. In general, though, low blood pressure can be considered anything under 90/60.
More information about a blood pressure reading of 65/46
A blood pressure reading of 65/46 is pronounced "65 over 46."
In a blood pressure reading of 65/46, 65 is called the systolic number and 46 is called the diastolic number. Systolic refers to the part of the cardiac cycle in which the heart contracts and pumps blood from the chambers into the arteries, and diastolic refers to the part of the cardiac cycle in which the heart relaxes and allows the chambers to fill with blood. You may also hear the systolic and diastolic numbers referred to as the top number and the bottom number.
Systolic and diastolic readings are measured in mmHg, which is a unit of pressure equal to the pressure that can support a column of mercury 1 millimeter high. Hg is the chemical symbol for mercury. For a blood pressure reading of 65/46, you would pronounce it "65 over 46 millimeters of mercury."
How do you measure blood pressure?
In a doctor's office, blood pressure is traditionally taken manually by a doctor or nurse with a sphygmomanometer. A sphygmomanometer is a medical instrument with an inflatable cuff and pressure meter or dial. The sphygmomanometer is placed snugly around the upper arm and is inflated by hand, and the doctor or nurse listens to the brachial artery with a stethoscope as they gradually reduce the pressure of the cuff. When the whooshing sound of blood is first heard through the stethoscope, the doctor or nurse makes note of the reading on the pressure meter. This indicates the systolic blood pressure reading. When the sound disappears, the reading on the pressure meter indicates the diastolic pressure reading.
Blood pressure can also be taken at home using a number of a digital devices. They typically consist of an inflatable cuff and digital display and simply work by placing the cuff around the upper arm and pressing a button, after which the cuff inflatess, deflates, and displays a reading. The most popular blood pressure machines for home use are made by Omron, Beurer, and Paramed, amongst many others.
How the heck do you pronouce sphygmomanometer?
Sphygmomanometer is pronounced sfig-moh-muh-'nah-mi-ter. Easy!
How do you say blood pressure in different languages?
- Arabic: ضغط الدم
- Bengali/Bangla: রক্তচাপ
- Chinese: 血压
- Czech: krevní tlak
- Dutch: bloeddruk
- French: pression artérielle
- German: Blutdruck
- Greek: πίεση αίματος
- Gujarati: લોહિનુ દબાણ
- Hindi: रक्तचाप
- Indonesian: tekanan darah
- Italian: pressione sanguigna
- Japanese: 血圧
- Korean: 혈압
- Marathi: रक्तदाब
- Nepali: रक्तचाप
- Odia: ରକ୍ତ ଚାପ
- Persian: فشار خون
- Polish: ciśnienie krwi
- Portuguese: pressão arterial
- Punjabi: ਬਲੱਡ ਪ੍ਰੈਸ਼ਰ
- Russian: артериальное давление
- Spanish: presión arterial
- Swedish: blodtryck
- Turkish: tansiyon
- Ukrainian: кров'яний тиск
- Urdu: بلڈ پریشر
- Vietnamese: huyết áp
The information on this page is intended to be an educational reference and is not to be taken as medical advice. If you think you're having a hypertensive or hypotensive emergency, or if you're having any kind of medical emergency, please call 911 immediately.