During the test
The test is often performed in doctor's offices or clinics by a nurse or a doctor, and it usually takes about 1 minute. Start by placing your arm slightly bent on a table so that your arm is at the same level as your heart.
Your doctor or nurse will wrap an inflatable cuff around the top of your arm and place a stethoscope just above the elbow over an artery in your arm. A circular dial attached to the cuff displays pressure. The cuff is then inflated to momentarily stop the blood flow in that artery. Your doctor or nurse will then slowly release the air in the cuff while listening to the pulse of your arm artery in the stethoscope.
The systolic pressure, the peak pressure that occurs when the heart contracts, is recorded as your doctor or nurse hears a pulsing or tapping sound through the stethoscope. The diastolic pressure, the blood pressure when the heart is relaxed, is recorded when the pulsing sound disappears.
It is also possible to measure your blood pressure through an automated machine.
After the test
Your health care provider can tell you what your blood pressure is right after the test, and you can resume your normal daily activities. Your doctor can then discuss with you what the result means. A healthy blood pressure is 120/80 millimeters of mercury (mm Hg), also called "120 over 80." You may need additional tests if your doctor finds that you have high or low blood pressure.
If your doctor finds that you have hypertension (high blood pressure) or prehypertension (borderline high blood pressure), you should discuss with your doctor strategies to lower your blood pressure. Examples of such strategies may be lowering salt intake and quitting smoking and alcohol.