COMPARISON OF BLOOD-PRESSURE MEASURED BY OSCILLOMETRY FROM THE SUPRAORBITAL ARTERY AND INVASIVELY FROM THE RADIAL ARTERY

In previous studies, oscillometric blood pressure measured from the su praorbital artery has been shown to agree quite well with pressure mea sured from the brachial artery in normal subjects. In this study, surg ical patients whose conditions warranted the use of invasive blood pre ssure monitoring during :he surgery were chosen. We compared systolic and diastolic blood pressure measured oscillometrically from the supra orbital artery with intraarterial blood pressures, measured invasively from the radial artery. A pressure bladder was attached to the forehe ad of each patient. The bladder was connected to a forehead blood pres sure monitor. A catheter was inserted in a radial artery, and connecte d to a pressure monitor. Forehead blood pressure was measured every 5 min. Radial arterial pressure was averaged over the same period during which the forehead measurement was made. Blood pressures measured wit h the two methods were compared. For the systolic pressure, the differ ence between the two methods was -9.9 +/- 17.9 mm Hg (mean +/- SD). Fo r diastolic pressure, the difference was -8.0 +/- 10.9 mn Hg. There wa s a significant difference between the two methods in the patient popu lation chosen in this study.