Blood pressure tracking apps are a useful tool for you to record your blood pressure readings. Instead of keeping a paper diary, these apps are a digital way to keep track of your blood pressure recordings. After you have taken your blood pressure using a reliable blood pressure monitor the app allows you to enter both the systolic and diastolic readings.
Warning: fake blood pressure apps
| Be aware !! | Fake blood pressure apps |
|---|---|
| There are many health apps that claim to measure your blood pressure without the use of a blood pressure cuff, but none of these have been validated and shouldn’t be trusted to give you an accurate recording. |
The only safe way to measure your blood pressure is to use a reliable blood pressure monitor.
You can measure your blood pressure at home using your own monitor or you can visit your local healthcare centre where a nurse or doctor can take a recording. If you’re unsure about which monitor to use or how to take your own blood pressure, talk with a healthcare professional who can show you how.
App reviews: blood pressure tracking apps
The Healthify team has reviewed the following blood pressure tracking apps.
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Excluded apps |
Blood Pressure Log- no longer available in Play Store | ||
Tips when using blood pressure apps
Do (✔)
- Talk with your nurse or doctor about your ideal blood pressure range and ways to maintain a healthy blood pressure.
- Use an app to keep track of your recordings as part of your blood pressure management plan.
Don’t (✘)
- Rely on apps that claim to measure your blood pressure without the use of a blood pressure cuff.
- Use a blood pressure app without first discussing it with your doctor.
- Make changes to your medication based on the recommendations from the app.
Deciding on a suitable blood pressure app — help me choose
While there are a growing number of apps that claim to support blood pressure self management, studies have found very few credible apps.4,5 Blood pressure apps differ in terms of their features and usefulness. A study on the review of mobile apps to support the self-management of hypertension found the following functionality features to be important and desirable in blood pressure apps (Alessa, 2018(external link)):
- self-monitoring capabilities: this enables the user to track their BP and other health data over time in different formats, including graphs or tables and access the summary.
- reminder and alerts: to remind users about their medication time, BP measurements, hospital visits or personal goals, or the system alerts another person such as their health care provider when a medication dose is missed or when the BP is higher than the normal level.
- automatic feedback: feedback is provided to users using different approaches, either active feedback through self-care messages and reinforcement messages and passive feedback by representing data in different color codes to indicate whether measurement levels differed from the normal range
- goal setting
- educational information
- communication with health care professional such as through text messaging
- stress management.
Related topics
Blood pressure (mate pēhanga toto)
High blood pressure | Mate pēhanga toto
NZ Health App Library
Consumer guide: how to choose a health app
Clinicians guide: how to choose a health app
References
- Popular Android blood pressure apps are useless and even harmful to patients(external link) iMedical Apps, Medpage Today, May 2016.
- Green BB. BP here, there, and everywhere--mobile health applications (apps) and hypertension care(external link). J Am Soc Hypertens. 2015 Feb;9(2):137-9.
- Kumar N, Khunger M, Gupta A, Garg N. A content analysis of smartphone-based applications for hypertension management.(external link) J Am Soc Hypertens. 2015 Feb;9(2):130-6.
- Alessa T, Abdi S, Hawley MS et al. Mobile Apps to Support the Self-Management of Hypertension: Systematic Review of Effectiveness, Usability, and User Satisfaction(external link). JMIR Mhealth Uhealth. 2018 Jul 23;6(7):e10723.
- Jamaladin H, van de Belt TH, Luijpers LC, et al. Mobile Apps for Blood Pressure Monitoring: Systematic Search in App Stores and Content Analysis.(external link) JMIR Mhealth Uhealth. 2018 Nov 14;6(11):e187
Disclaimer: Healthify’s app library is a free consumer service to help you decide whether a health app would be suitable for you. Our review process is independent. We have no relationship with the app developers or companies and no responsibility for the service they provide. This means that if you have an issue with one of the apps we have reviewed, you will need to contact the app developer or company directly.