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Medicine vocabulary · History Taking and Examination

Blood pressure

Meaning in medicine, with examples

/ˈblʌd ˌpreʃər/nounCore term

In medicine, blood pressure means: The force of the blood pushing against the walls of the arteries, measured in millimetres of mercury and given as two numbers, for example 120/80.

In Turkish: kan basıncı, tansiyon

How it is used

Shortened to BP in notes and speech. The two numbers are the systolic and diastolic pressure and are read aloud as '120 over 80'. You take, check, measure or monitor someone's blood pressure.

Example sentences

  1. Her blood pressure is 150 over 95, so we'll recheck it at the end of the visit.

  2. Could you take his blood pressure on both arms?

Common collocations

  • take someone's blood pressure
  • high blood pressure
  • low blood pressure
  • blood pressure reading
  • BP cuff
  • hypertensionBlood pressure that stays higher than normal over time, which increases the risk of stroke, heart attack and kidney disease.
  • vital signsThe basic body measurements checked to see how ill a patient is: temperature, pulse, breathing rate and blood pressure, and often oxygen level.
  • strokeSudden damage to part of the brain caused by a blocked blood vessel or by bleeding, which can cause weakness, speech problems or loss of vision.
  • heart failureA long-term condition in which the heart cannot pump blood around the body as well as it should, often causing breathlessness, tiredness and swollen ankles.

This word in other fields

The same English word can have a different meaning in another field:

More terms: History Taking and Examination

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This page explains English vocabulary for learners. It is not medical advice.