Session Key Points

It is important to note the following key points about non-invasive blood pressure monitoring:

• Blood pressure is one of the most commonly monitored vital signs during anaesthesia and sedation
• Manual sphygmomanometers are subject to operator dependent errors in reading
• Oscillotonometers display maximum oscillations at mean arterial pressure
• Automated non-invasive blood pressure measurement has now overtaken the manual methods
• Non-invasive blood pressure measurement is inaccurate at extremes of blood pressure as it over-reads at low pressures and under-reads at high pressures