Introduction & Objective: There are many noninvasive methods to measure systolic blood pressure. A new noninvasive method by pulse oximetery has recently been reported. The purpose of this study was the comparison of systolic blood pressure measurement by pulse oximetery and with auscultatory method.
Material & Methods: Systolic blood pressure measurement using pulse oximeter was compared with current auscultatory method. Thirty one healthy volunteers enrolled and were positioned in supine, prone and lithotomy for three 10 minutes periods. Blood pressure was measured at the end of each position by two methods.
Results: There was a significant correlation between two method in all positions; supine (r= 0.72), prone (r= 0.88) and lithotomy (r= 0.78).
Conclusion: Pulse oximeter seems to be a useful non-invasive method of systolic blood pressure measurement. In order to increase the accuracy of this method, low speed of cuff inflation and deflation is strongly recommended.