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Blood Pressure Measurement (Manual)

Always tested on the CCMA

Measure blood pressure using a sphygmomanometer and stethoscope.

About this skill

Manual blood pressure measurement with the correct cuff size, patient positioning, and auscultation of Korotkoff sounds to determine systolic and diastolic readings.

13 total steps

4 critical steps

Time limit: 5 min

What graders are watching for

1
Cuff bladder width should be 40 percent of arm circumference
2
Deflate at 2 to 3 mm Hg per second
3
First Korotkoff sound is systolic; disappearance is diastolic

Common mistakes (and how to avoid them)

!
Cuff too small falsely elevates the reading
!
Not supporting the patient's arm at heart level
!
Re-inflating without fully deflating first

Practice this skill step-by-step

The static walkthrough above is the marketing overview. The full step-by-step interactive practice (with critical-step highlighting, per-step "why this matters" rationale, and what graders watch for on each individual step) is unlocked with a subscription.

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