Many people search online for “NHS Approved Blood Pressure Monitor”, but the NHS doesn’t recommend Blood Pressure Monitor brands to the public.
Instead, the NHS suggests you choose from an approved list that has been validated for accuracy by the British and Irish Hypertension Society (BIHS).
We’ve compared the BIHS clinically validated and approved list on our website:
In this blog post, we’ve taken some of Amazon’s best-selling blood pressure monitors and cross-referenced them with the BIHS list to illustrate what we feel are a few problems with the way Amazon sells medical devices.
The results weren’t great, for these reasons:
- The BIHS list seems to lag behind the models being sold currently, clearly some suppliers [like Omron, A and D, and others appear very engaged with BHIS and other approval bodies in Japan, the United States and Canada] but their newer models don’t appear on the list
- Some suppliers on the Amazon website make unverifiable claims about being “NHS Approved Blood Pressure Monitors.”
- Amazon’s search results mix approved and non-approved products in a very confusing way
The end result is consumers end up with a very confused picture of what’s approved, or not, leading to some non-approved monitors being big sellers on Amazon.
Amazon Top 5 Best Sellers cross-referenced with the BIHS list of approved monitors
– 1 Cazon – the most popular blood pressure monitor on Amazon but I can’t see it on the current BIHS approved list
– 2 A&D Medical Blood Pressure Monitor BIHS Approved UK Blood Pressure Machine UA-611 – BIHS approved
– 3 The Vimmk isn’t BIHS approved.
– 4 The OMRON X2 Basic – Automatic Upper Arm Blood Pressure Monitor for Home Use, Clinically Validated| Irregular Heartbeat Detection |Cuff Wrapping Guide – Accurate Results & Memory – is listed as approved on BHIS website
– 5 OxiPro BP1 Blood Pressure Monitor – CE Approved BP Blood Pressure Machines for home Use with Heart Rate Monitor & Large Cuff – Sphygmomanometer – Certified Blood Pressure Monitors – not listed as approved on BHIS website [although a lot of their other models are]
– 6 OMRON X3 Comfort Automatic Upper Arm Blood Pressure Monitor for Home Use, Clinically Validated Machine Including Use on Diabetics and Pregnancy, Intelli Wrap Cuff Accurate Results – is listed as approved on BIHS website [although a lot of their other models are], and a HEM-7155-E is listed…
We have discussed that there is no “NHS Approved Blood Pressure Monitor” list and that the NHS recommends that you look at the BIHS list.
The BIHS list doesn’t exactly match any of the top-5 Amazon-selling blood pressure monitors. However, you can see some manufacturers have a lot more devices listed than others, e.g., Omron. So, I tend to trust Omron.
My Recommended Blood Pressure Monitor
I chose the Omron X3. It is very easy to use and synchronises easily and quickly with my phone over Bluetooth every time. My GP loves the average readings and graphs it provides. He particularly likes that the home readings are lower, as I’m more relaxed at home [due to not having the ‘white coat effect]. Also, the stiff cuff goes easily around my large upper arm and is very easy to put on, on my own.
Good alternatives to the Omron X are:
- The A&D – this is a good value no frills BIHS Approved blood pressure monitor
- The iHealth Track blood pressure monitor comes with blue-tooth, can link to Apple and Android phones and comes with an App, a lot of features when you consider it’s around £20 cheaper than the Omron
