Background and objective:

the measurement of blood pressure is one of the most used procedures in clinical practice, what is related to the high prevalence of arterial hypertension. An inaccurate measurement generates a significant problem, because few mmHg of systematic error artificially increase or decrease 50% its diagnosis and 40% its degree of control. Also, correct measurement usually shows more hypertensives with blood pressure within the target range. The present study was carried out to evaluate the quality of the blood pressure measure in the usual practice.

Method:

observational cross-sectional study in health institutions while the staff performed the usual care. The observations were contrasted with the requirements for a correct measure, by analyzing 36 variables grouped in three dimensions: structure (environment, equipment), process (interview, patient, observer) and result. The dimension was considered correct when it had ³75% of appropriate variables in each measure.

Results:

in the 302 measures analyzed there was a correct percentage of 100% in structure, 5% in process and 47% in result. Rounding to zero and insufficient patient interview were the most frequent errors, followed by placing the stethoscope under the cuff and performing a single measurement when the initial value was ³140/90 mmHg.

Conclusions:

failures were detected in the measurement of blood pressure in the usual practice related to poor measurement technique. In chronic treatment of arterial hypertension, the accuracy of the measurement is essential since both its diagnosis and its management require adequate blood pressure values.

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