Blood Pressure Underpants

You can't turn your back for a minute can you?

It's easy to measure blood pressure, but the necessary equipment for clinically accurate measurements - a cuff, a pump, and stethoscope or electronics - is bulky and heavy.

But doctors have now discovered that a person's "pulse wave velocity" is closely linked to blood pressure. This is the rate at which the pulse pressure wave passes through the blood circulatory system. An article in the magazine New Scientist tells us more.

Philips electronics engineers have sewn sensors into the waistband of a pair of underpants and have managed to measure the rate of this wave. This allows blood pressure to be checked regularly.

Each sensor continually measures the electrical impedance of the tissue beneath it - a property that changes as the pulse wave passes by. A pair of such sensors can calculate the speed of the pulse wave by timing how long it takes to travel from one sensor to the other.

Once calibrated with a conventional blood-pressure reading, the electrodes can then give accurate blood-pressure readings, while the wearer enjoys the comfort of their own underpants!

What ever next?

This hub was written by Dr Gordon Cameron - a family doctor in Scotland who has a special interest in blood pressure treatment. You can read more about measuring blood pressure on his website.