Self-Taking Home Blood Pressure Kit with Stethoscope

My son, who is a nurse, said to me once, "Mo one can take their own blood pressure without an electronic machine." I laughed and said I'd been doing so for years. But you need the right setup, and you ned to know how to use it! I struggled with using electronic blood pressure machines for a couple of years and they gave me readings all over the chart. This RAISED my blood pressure! Not my goal! Then I purchased a manual blood pressure kit with an attached stethoscope. When i placed the stethoscope right on top of my artery and supported that arm so it could be extended straight I could hear the beat loud and clear STARTING at the top of the reading and ending at the bottom reading. This was a tremendous relief! But are manual BP sets accurate? My pressure was high recently and I wondered if I was getting the correct reading. I took my manual BP kit to my cardiologist's office and a nurse sat with me when I used it. She took my pressure first then I took it with my kit. They were the same. So I asked why people worried about accuracy, and she said, "These manual sets when used correctly as you are. are always accurate." But not so with electronic machines. I read a lot of reviews before I ordered this particular set and some people complained that the stethoscope in this kit did not convey a loud enough sound. That made me concerned. But when I assembled this kit and applied the cuff, pumped up the pressure and gradually released the air pressure, the beat came loud and clear when the pressure got to the upper reading of my BP. The real key is the location of the stethoscope. If the scope is not placed over the top of the artery in your arm it will be hard or impossible to hear the sound of the beat. Do read the directions that come with the kit. There were four or more informations sheets in this kit and they are very well done and will help you find the right place for locating the beat. Or talk with your doctor or nurses so they can help you. The last thing to note is to make sure - if you are taking your own pressure - a stethoscope is included in your kit AND it is permanently attached to the bottom edge of the cuff, as is this one. I have only two arms . If one is extended with a cuff you can hole the pressure gage in that hand and watch it for your reading as long as you can see well at the distance of your arm's length. The other hand will be holding the bulb and using your fingers to adjust the valve. But if you do not have a stethoscope, you will not be able to get a reading. Or if it is not permanently attached too the cuff you would need a third arm tp hold the end of the stethoscope - which most of us do not have! However you would make my son right! You cannot take your own pressure with a manual kit unless - the stethoscope is permanently attached to the cuff. So, you can tell, I am perfectly pleased with kit. The cuff holds its shape so when you go to tighten it around your upper arm it will wrap around your arm pretty easily. It takes practice to keep your sleeve up, and teh cuff straight and wrap it evenly around your arm. Sometimes the velcro likes to grab on too early or cock-eyed and it is hard to detatch the velcro. It wants to spin around your arm and holding the cuff inlace with your chin while trying to get the velcro to let go can test your dexterity and sense of humor! But it gets easier with practice! Last little trick. There are three hoses coming off the cuff. Sometimes they become tangled. I lay the cuff on the kitchen table with the hoses running away from me. I untangle the stethoscope hose so it is headed toward the non-strap arm. Then I straighten out the other two hoses- one to the bulb and the other to the gauge. Next I fit the stethoscope earbuds into my ears. This really requires two hands. THEN I slide my left* arm into the cuff, and aim the artery arrow over my artery and wrap the cuff around my arm. I hold the gauge in my left* hand. Next I take the bulb and attached valve in my right* hand. (*If you're left handed use the opposite arm to the one I name.) Then follow the directions for managing the bulb and valve. I hope this helps you. This kit is VERY inexpensive and very reliable when used properly. Happy healthy blood pressure to you!

I ordered 4 self taking BP monitors and this is the only one that worked. The "LotFancy Manual Blood Pressure Cuff, Aneroid Sphygmomanometer and Stethoscope Kit with Zipper Case, FDA Approved " does not have the Stethoscope integrated, so cannot be used for self monitoring without great difficulty. Same with MDF® Iconica Palm Aneroid Sphygmomanometer - Professional Blood Pressure Monitor with Adult Sized Cuff Included - Black (MDF848IC-11) . The Omron Home Blood Pressure Kit Large, Blue/Black - 104MAJ worked poorly - the gauge was defective, and the Stethoscope also didn't seemed to work. It was very hard to put on its cuffs too. The Walgreen monitor I bought at a store also has poort quality. Finally Veridian had everything working, so I am giving it a 5 star. If I hadn't had so many prior bad experiences, I might have just given it a 4 star

The aging game requires me to monitor my blood pressure regularly. I’m not a fan of the automatic digital blood pressure monitors. They’re expensive, take longer to get a reading and can be inaccurate. I prefer manual cuffs. But taking your own blood pressure can be difficult with a traditional stethoscope and cuff. Enter this little beauty! The stethoscope is attached to the cuff so it’s always going to be in the correct position, on your arm, to allow for an accurate reading. Plus, having to hold a stethoscope in place on your arm amplifies the sounds of any movements you make and that can make it difficult to hear the sounds you are trying to hear. This kit is great. It’s simple and easy to use and it doesn’t cost much. In fact, it’s only 1/4 the price of an automatic cuff. It is also faster and more accurate than an automatic one. How can you go wrong? You won’t with this one. Take care of your health, everyone. Life is too precious to have it cut short by health issues that you can actually control. Get one of these little gems and stay safe. Cheers !

This worked as expected for about 6 weeks. Then the manometer gauge went off kilter. The needle sat at 288 mmHg instead of 0, therefore, any measurements would be inaccurate. I contacted Veridian and their only answer was to return the product to them which would cost as much as the product.

The Veridian gauge is solid with easy to read digits and why I chose this brand. The cuff is comfortable with very strong Velcro, so strong I don't even bother with it. After closing the cuff once, I carefully slide it on and off the arm. It takes getting used to as the placement of the stethoscope chestpiece is key. I have to keep the tubes separate to prevent them from rubbing and causing noise. The systolic, loud pulses are very clear but I have trouble hearing the lowest pulse for the diastolic reading. Could be just me or the stethoscope. The earpieces do tend to dig into the ear, OK with me, but uncomfortable for my wife. The attache case is too small, NOT for traveling, more for disassembled storage. I would have taken off 2 stars for the impractical case and sub-par stethoscope, but at this price, still a good value so one star off. One more note, my doctor said my internal pulse sounds would interfere with the stethoscope's on self-taking models. For now, I continue to use it when I'm alone.

Works great

I needed this to replace the one that I lost. Great! I can start rechecked my husband's blood pressure again. Thanks for having this item available to purchase.

Well built and works well though it takes a bit of time to get used to. The attached stethoscope simplifies use and accuracy by allowing the measured arm to relax, while using only the opposing hand to operate. As long as you use in a quiet room and have no hearing problems you will get very accurate readings. I also have two automatic units and none of the three give readings that agree with each other, After 2 months use the three units and recording each unit 's readings, I have found the Veridian unit is the most consistent. I no longer trust the electronic units to give readings with any degree of accuracy, differing by as much as 23 points above and/or below the Veridan..