this is a very good question. thank you for asking! blood pressure is read as two numbers such as 110/70. the first number indicates the amount of pressure in your arteries when your heart contracts in a beat. the second number indicates the pressure in your arteries while your heart is at rest between beats. the difference between these two numbers is called your "pulse pressure. " for example if your pressure is 110/70 that's a pulse pressure of 40 which is considered normal. if your numbers are closer together such as 110/90 you have a low pulse pressure. in this example it would be 20. this can be an indication of poor heart function. however the answer to your question depends a bit on how high the numbers are to begin with. a blood pressure of 140/100 for example would be considered "high blood pressure " even though the pulse pressure of 40 is considered normal. a blood pressure of 180/160 would be considered extremely high blood pressure even though the pulse pressure of 20 would be considered "low. " if you have questions about your blood pressure in general i suggest you speak to your primary health care provider for an explanation that's specific to your case. take care! husband suffers from congenial heart diease. blood pressure today is 87/68 and has been low for a couple of days
waht does it mean when your blood pressure numbers are close together