how do you take the BP in this scenario?

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on a patient that has pain in both arms or has a blood clots in the arms? i have never taken a thigh blood pressure before.. how do you do it?

Specializes in Community Health, Med-Surg, Home Health.

I also think that sometimes, you want to hear it 'live' from a peer rather than a textbook. I tend to be like that, and I read ALL the time.

From what I remember, the patient should be lying down, at least and the pulse can be felt at the popliteal. Now, I had a situation where I had to take a blood pressure this way, and to be honest, I did not hear it through the popliteal at all and barely felt the pulse. Had to get another nurse to assist.

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Specializes in Peds/Neo CCT,Flight, ER, Hem/Onc.
It's not like the OP has asked several questions and wants us to fill in the blank so we can do her homework for her.

Actually she has in at least 8 different threads. The questions she has posed in the other threads are very obviously homework questions. The problem I see is that several people have tried to help her think through her problem by asking her leading questions to get her to come to the correct answer. These questions would involve her doing a little research (and I mean very little). Usually by the time these well-intentioned professionals get their posts up somebody else has completely answered the question for her and she never comes back to the post. Then she goes on to post another set of questions. Those of us who have protested answering these questions are taking a lot of heat and being accused of, among other things, being mean and uncaring, not wanting to answer the questions because we are so stupid we don't actually know the answers, etc. In the course of my career I have been an educator, preceptor for both students, new grads and experienced new hires and a clinical resource person for my coworkers. I LOVE teaching. What I don't love is regurgitating information. Especially to someone who doesn't appear to want to do the work. We all know nursing isn't like say...history. In history class you memorize a bunch of dates, people and places. In nursing there is much more to knowing data. This is why critical thinking is so improtant. You might know that a side effect of a medication is nausea but we should also know why it causes that side effect and how to mitigate that effect and why it might be more detrimental to one patient than another. Just knowing it causes nausea isn't enough. So while the questions that have been posed may serve an educational purpose for others reading the posts the OP unfortunately is not likely gaining much more than her homework being done. I'm afraid that we are doing a disservice to her in many ways. Not the least of which is how will she ever pass NCLEX (supposedly taking in May 2009) if she can't work through these questions with even a basic critically thinking mind. I'm sorry if you disagree with me but i just can't help thinking we aren't doing a good thing here.

I will now put on my asbestos undies.

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Specializes in ICU.

I will now put on my asbestos undies.

You're right, but you don't have to put those on!! lol

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Specializes in Peds/Neo CCT,Flight, ER, Hem/Onc.
You're right, but you don't have to put those on!! lol

Thank you for that!!!:wink2:

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Specializes in EMS, ER.

Easy, get a smaller cuff (small adult, child, ped, whatever fits best), and take the b/p on the wrist or ankle. Just remember pt position, distance from heart etc affects measurement & take that into account when interpreting.....

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Went to google for you and typed in 'leg blood pressure measurement' and this is the first response

http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/471829

Please try to give google and your textbooks a try first-you may surprise yourself with all the answers to your multiple questions on this board can be found by simple searching.

As a student, I would much rather ask a nurse than "google" anything. I feel the question was good and I loved the answers.

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Actually she has in at least 8 different threads. The questions she has posed in the other threads are very obviously homework questions. The problem I see is that several people have tried to help her think through her problem by asking her leading questions to get her to come to the correct answer. These questions would involve her doing a little research (and I mean very little). So while the questions that have been posed may serve an educational purpose for others reading the posts the OP unfortunately is not likely gaining much more than her homework being done. I'm afraid that we are doing a disservice to her in many ways. how will she ever pass NCLEX (supposedly taking in May 2009) if she can't work through these questions with even a basic critically thinking mind. I'm sorry if you disagree with me but i just can't help thinking we aren't doing a good thing here.

WOW, you guys kind of scare me on here. I am a nursing student, and I was so happy to find this site because if i can't understand an rationale, I want to hear it from different angles so I can get a grip on what I may be lacking. It seems "Flying Scot" knows alot about others on the site down to how many topics are made by various posters. I just wanted to get extra feedback. I hope if I ask a question, people will help me. I will know the answer, or the wrong answer :chuckle but at least I will give my rationale and ask why I am wrong or what else I really need to hone in on.

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Specializes in Cardiac Telemetry, ED.
WOW, you guys kind of scare me on here. I am a nursing student, and I was so happy to find this site because if i can't understand an rationale, I want to hear it from different angles so I can get a grip on what I may be lacking. It seems "Flying Scot" knows alot about others on the site down to how many topics are made by various posters. I just wanted to get extra feedback. I hope if I ask a question, people will help me. I will know the answer, or the wrong answer :chuckle but at least I will give my rationale and ask why I am wrong or what else I really need to hone in on.

The problem is, I see a lot of misinformation here. Would you believe the rationale for something simply because the person telling you the rationale is a nurse?

I enjoy teaching very much, but I'd rather have someone ask me a question that shows they've been trying to figure it out, than simply asking for the answer. Nursing involves using your brain, knowing how to find the answers when you don't know them. I agree that just handing someone the answers does them a disservice.

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Specializes in psych, addictions, hospice, education.

Information on how to take a thigh blood pressure is found in basic nursing textbooks. I don't mind answering questions, but something basic that could be found by using the index of a text isn't something I'm likely to answer, since asking it implies the person has time to type on a message board, wait for an answer, and not the energy to look it up his or herself. The question was basic. I'm also concerned a nursing student who will graduate soon doesn't know the answer.

May I borrow flameproof armor please? :D

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Specializes in Peds/Neo CCT,Flight, ER, Hem/Onc.
May I borrow flameproof armor please? :D

Absolutely!!!! :chuckle

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Specializes in ED, ICU, PACU.

It's not like the OP has asked several questions and wants us to fill in the blank so we can do her homework for her.

The OP HAS been asking a lot of questions. Just look at the profile to find the posts made. OP even asks whether to study or go to sleep, whether to change career to business because of failing nursing classes, etc. OP needs to learn how to think for his/herself, learn HOW to learn and how to find answers to questions.

This is not a case of eating young. Never has OP given rationale or shown any reasoning. We are really trying to help the OP and spoon feeding answers is not going to help. Sorry if anyone thinks otherwise.

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Specializes in ER/Trauma.

*clears throat*

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Let's discuss the topic on hand - rather than each other.

Please.

Thank you :)

- Roy

allnurses.com moderator

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