High BP Meds.....

[windmiller]

Even Cochrane are not the Rosetta stone of all things health.

[Jdsk]

Cochrane Reviews are very convenient sources and starting places for people who don't know their way around a medical subject. The summaries are free everywhere and the whole content is free in the UK. They include a summary in plain English for patients and carers. They follow a clear methodology. They show their working.

They aren't perfect but I don't know anything systematically better for the purpose.

Cochrane Plain Language Summaries
https://www.cochrane.org/evidence

The Cochrane Library
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cochrane_Library

Jonathan

PS: Do you mean Rosetta Stone? The significance of that was how it enabled translation, not any quality of content.

[windmiller]

Cochrane Reviews are very convenient sources and starting places for people who don't know their way around a medical subject. The summaries are free everywhere and the whole content is free in the UK. They include a summary in plain English for patients and carers. They follow a clear methodology. They show their working.

They aren't perfect but I don't know anything systematically better for the purpose.

Cochrane Plain Language Summaries
https://www.cochrane.org/evidence

The Cochrane Library
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cochrane_Library

Jonathan

PS: Do you mean Rosetta Stone? The significance of that was how it enabled translation, not any quality of content.

I was being cynical, they translate very well for big pharma.

[Jdsk]

Cochrane statement on funding:
https://www.cochrane.org/about-us/our-funders-and-partners

and on commercial sponsorship:
https://training.cochrane.org/online-learning/editorial-policies/coi-policy/commercial-sponsorship-policy

Jonathan

[windmiller]

https://www.cochrane.org/news/impact-co ... ing-caries

I lost all respect for them after watching this rubbish, they make Heath Robinson look like NASA.

https://www.madinamerica.com/2019/02/in ... aboration/

this one raises a few eyebrows.

[Jdsk]

What didn't you like about the xylitol review, please?

Thanks

Jonathan

[windmiller]

The xylitol review is at best amateurish, a crude attempt to promote bad science and poo poo the importance of this chemical compound regarding its' proven benefits in the field of dental health.

There is a ton of genuine scientific evidence out there that the informed in dentistry are aware of, it just all depends on what side of "vested interests" they chose to follow.

[Jdsk]

Thanks

Jonathan

[Mick F]

I was on BP meds and then found out that I didn't have a BP issue, but a stress issue.
Take my BP at the health centre, and it's way too high.

White Coat syndrome?
No, not me.
It's being tested that sends my stress level up ............ and my BP ............ and it doesn't matter who is doing it, and me DIY included.

If you have your own BP monitor, do it on one arm, then do it on the other arm.
Quite a big difference.
Swap arms back and forth, and note the figures.
Do it over a whole evening relaxing and quiet.
Sit down at home in your armchair, relax, do it again and again, relax some more, get the pulse-rate down, and do it again ................

At no time will you have any figure that is consistent. Not one!
Which is correct?
Take an average?

Mine generally is fine.
Go to the doctor's and it's sky-high .............. hence the meds, which I was given, got side effects, and have since give up on them.

Received a letter yesterday asking me to make an appointment for reviews on my asthma and my BP.

Asthma isn't an issue at all.

They say to use the surgery pod to measure my height and weight and to do my BP reading.
No issue with measuring my height, but the weight will include winter clothes, and the BP reading(s) will be pointless.
I'll go along with it all and expect a call from the doctor regarding my probably high BP.

Ha Ha Ha.

[thirdcrank]

I can see that keen cyclists may typically pay more attention to the accurate measurement of weight than other people (with notable exceptions such as gold and silversmiths) but in my IME the measurement of bodyweight in parts of the NHS is in the slap happy range, with BP a close second.

[Jdsk]

Received a letter yesterday asking me to make an appointment for reviews on my asthma and my BP.

Asthma isn't an issue at all.

On 7 August 2021 you told us:

As I say, I'm up and down health-wise due to asthma...

viewtopic.php?p=1628401#p1628401

But if you think that the practice records are wrong I strongly recommend discussing them in order to avoid future confusion.

Jonathan

[drossall]

I'll go along with it all and expect a call from the doctor regarding my probably high BP.

Who was it who told a story about his height in metres accidentally being recorded in centimetres, resulting in an urgent call from the surgery about his improbably high BMI?

[Hellhound]

I was on BP meds and then found out that I didn't have a BP issue, but a stress issue.
Take my BP at the health centre, and it's way too high.
White Coat syndrome?
No, not me.
It's being tested that sends my stress level up ............ and my BP ............ and it doesn't matter who is doing it, and me DIY included.
If you have your own BP monitor, do it on one arm, then do it on the other arm.
Quite a big difference.
Swap arms back and forth, and note the figures.
Do it over a whole evening relaxing and quiet.
Sit down at home in your armchair, relax, do it again and again, relax some more, get the pulse-rate down, and do it again ................
At no time will you have any figure that is consistent. Not one!
Which is correct?
Take an average?
Mine generally is fine.
Go to the doctor's and it's sky-high .............. hence the meds, which I was given, got side effects, and have since give up on them.

If you had side effects then why not try a different medication?Have you self diagnosed it being a stress issue or did your GP come to this conclusion?
You say it's generally fine but you get inconsistent results.Is your BP monitor working correctly?How can you be sure it's fine if you are getting different results everytime you do a reading?

Since going on Ramirpril a couple of years ago my BP readings are always consistent whether taken at home or at my GP surgery.

[Mick F]

If you had side effects then why not try a different medication?Have you self diagnosed it being a stress issue or did your GP come to this conclusion?
You say it's generally fine but you get inconsistent results.Is your BP monitor working correctly?How can you be sure it's fine if you are getting different results everytime you do a reading?

Since going on Ramirpril a couple of years ago my BP readings are always consistent whether taken at home or at my GP surgery.

They tried me on a few different meds.
All horrible for me ................ and pointless.

Inconsistency is the fact that BP measurement is ALWAYS inconsistent.
Put one arm in the BP device and take a reading.
Put the other arm in and note that the figure is different.
Put the first arm in, and you'll get a third reading.
Repeat ad infinitum.
Try it and see.
I have a home device and have used it in the past. Gives less inconsistent readings than the surgery unit as I'm relaxed at home.

I agree with TC though, as the weight issue is really checking for obesity/height/weight and despite winter clothing it won't make a ha'porth bit of difference for a fit and healthy - pushing 70yo - chap like me.

I'll go along and do the measuring and take it all with a pinch of salt, and then tell them to get lost.

[Jdsk]

... and then tell them to get lost.

Or thank them for trying to help?

General practices are under enormous pressure, and a bit of consideration can go a long way. But failing that politeness would seem appropriate.

Jonathan