What is a blood pressure measurement?
A blood pressure measurement is expressed as two numbers, for example 132 / 74 (read as 132 over 74). In medical terms, these numbers are referred to as systolic and diastolic blood pressures. • Systolic blood pressure—the top number—is the pressure in your arteries when the heart contracts, or beats, pushing blood through the arteries. • Diastolic blood pressure—the bottom number—is the pressure remaining in your arteries when the heart relaxes between beats. Both of these numbers are important measures of the pressure on your artery walls. If either number is too high, you have high blood pressure.
