Bio Lab2

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Blood pressure is measured in two stages: systolic and diastolic. Systolic refers to the amount of
pressure placed on the arterial walls when the heart contracts. Diastolic refers to the amount of
pressure placed on the arterial walls when the heart releases. There are several factors that can
cause blood pressure as well as heart rate to fluctuate or change, often leading to circulatory or
organ complications.

Vasoconstricors
1. This is a term used to describe elements or substances that cause the veins to contract.
This includes caffeine contained in several soft drinks and coffee as well as certain
medications. As the veins contract, heart rate may fluctuate and blood pressure tends to
rise.

Vasodilators

2. This is a term used to describe elements or substances that cause veins to dilate and
widen. As they widen, blood flow slows causing a decrease in blood pressure. Causes
include dehydration and diuretics, which rid the body of excess fluids through excretion.

Body Mass
3. A person's body mass can have a significant effect on both their heart rate and blood
pressure. Obesity is a primary cause of high blood pressure and increased heart rate
because the heart must work harder to pump blood to larger portions of the body.

Pregnancy has the opposite effect on the circulatory system. Typically when a woman
becomes pregnant, her systolic and diastolic blood pressure decreases five to 15 points
during the first 24 weeks of gestation. Blood pressure will usually raise again post childbirth.

Malfunction
4. Often as people age, they experience a malfunction in communication between the brain
and the heart. This can matriculate into a disease known as orthostatic hypotension. In a
person without orthostatic hypotension, the heart compensates for blood pooled to the
body's extremities--often caused an extended period of sitting or lying down--by increasing
its beat rate. In a person with orthostatic hypotension, this compensation does not occur.
The result is a drop in blood pressure.

Infection

5. Severe infection, also known as septic shock, can cause life-threatening drops in blood
pressure. This commonly occurs when bacterial infections originating in the lungs, urinary
 tract or abdomen leave the infection site and enter the bloodstream. Blood pressure drops
significantly as these bacteria begin to produce toxins that directly affect the blood vessels.

Warning

6. These are only a few of the factors that can cause fluctuations in blood pressure and
heart rate. Speak with a doctor if you experience a sudden change in blood pressure
accompanied by chest pain, dizziness or fainting. These can sometimes be precursors to
serious complications, such as kidney failure, shock and cardiac arrest.

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Relationship between Herat Rate and Blood Pressure:

Relationship Between Blood Pressure & Heart

Rate
By Genevieve Hawkins, eHow Contributor

Many people believe that blood pressure and pulse rate rise and fall together, even though this is not
always true. Although blood pressure and heart rate may be related, the relationship changes
depending on your individual medical condition. According to Dr. Cynthia Shelby-Lane of the Élan
Anti-Aging & Longevity Center of Michigan, heart rate can be affected by electrical disturbances that
might or might not affect blood pressure.

1.

Exercise is good for cardiovascular health

Function
2. Blood is ejected from the aorta into large arteries that spread the fluid throughout the
body. Systemic arterial blood pressure (the kind most often measured) measures pressure
waves that flow through the brachial artery in the arm. Normally when the heart pumps more
 frequently (increasing pulse) blood pressure also moves upwards, which is why both blood
pressure and heart rate are higher during exercise and lower when you are sleeping.

Significance
3. Because people with high blood pressure are more likely to have heart attacks, your
blood pressure is often used as a proxy of your overall cardiovascular health. If your blood
pressure is too high, your doctor may prescribe you medicine to fix it, which may also impact
your average heart rate. Medicine to lower blood pressure may cause your heart rate to
increase or to decrease, or it may have no effect.

Guidelines

4. According to the National High Blood Pressure Education Program, a systolic blood
pressure reading of between 120 and 139 mmHG (millimeters of mercury) and a diastolic
reading of between 80 and 89 mmHG is considered prehypertensive. A systolic reading of
between 140 and 159 and a diastolic reading of between 90 and 99 is considered Stage 1
hypertension. A systolic reading of above 160 mmHG and a diastolic reading of above 100
mmHG is considered Stage 2 hypertension. Your average resting heart rate should be
between 60 and 80 beats per minute. Athletes tend to have lower than average resting
pulse rates.

Effects

5. An exercise regimen may help lower your blood pressure, but it does not appear to lower
your resting pulse rate as was originally thought. According to Dr. Gabe Mirkin in "Resting
Heart Rate and Recovery Heart Rate," a 20-week endurance program did not lower the
average resting heart rate of participants. A better measure of cardiovascular fitness is how
fast your pulse rate slows down after strenuous exercise--your pulse rate should slow down
by 30 beats one minute after very vigorous physical activity.

Prevention/Solution

6. Both low blood pressure and a low resting pulse rate are correlated with good health. In
order to lower your blood pressure without medicine, eat a diet rich in fruits, vegetables and
whole grains, and low in saturated fats. Exercise each day for at least 30 minutes. Live a
less stressful life.

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rate.html#ixzz194JqslCV
Finding Your Heart Rate:
1. Feel with the fingertips of your index and middle finger for your pulse point until you detect
pulsations.
2. Keep yourself as still as possible while you are taking your heart rate.
3. Count the number of heartbeats you feel in one minute. Record the results.
4. Now repeat steps 1-3 measuring your heart rate at a different pulse point.
5. Repeat the procedure for your partner.
6. Graph and compare results.

Finding your Blood Pressure:

1. Student patient should extend arm on table with palm up.

2. Place blood pressure cuff above the bend in the arm. The cuff should be snug yet have enough
room to insert two fingers.
3. Check to see if valve is open or closed.
4. Place stethoscope ear tips into ear.
5. Position stethoscope on arm to hear pulse.
6. Pump pressure up to 180 mm.
7. Release valve slowly.
8. The first pulse sound you hear as you release the valve is the systolic pressure.
Have the student patient place their finger on the number of the first sound to mark the spot.
9. Continue to release the valve. Approximately 40 mm down from the first sound you will hear
is called the diastolic pressure.
10. Record the systolic and the diastolic pressure on the chart.
11. Jog in place for two minutes.
12. Repeat steps 1-10.
13. Record results.
14. Make a bar graph of results.
15. Present, analyze, and compare results in class.

Finding Your Heart Rate2:

Don the stethoscope. Place the diaphragm of the stethoscope on your partner’s
thorax, to the left of the sternum at the fifth intercostal space, and listen carefully
for heart sounds. The first sound will be a longer, louder (more booming) sound
than the second, which is short and sharp. After listening for a couple of minutes,
try to time the pause between the second sound and the first sound of the next
heart beat.