Patent ID: 7530954

Claim:
A method for identifying a valid systolic blood pressure of a person having hardened arteries comprising, inflating an arm cuff on a patient beginning at zero cuff pressure at a rate sufficient to detect each pulse and pulse amplitude; detecting each said pulse and said pulse amplitude, and a cuff pressure; transferring said pulse amplitude and said cuff pressure to a data processor as each pulse is detected; tracking the pulse amplitude and said cuff pressure being delivered to said data processor to form a series of points representing pulse amplitude that form a curved arch typical of a section of a blood pressure profile and said series of points; extrapolating said curved arch to predict the amplitude of a next point before a next pulse has arrived; wherein the step of inflating the arm cuff, the step of tracking the pulse amplitude and the cuff pressure, and the step of extrapolating the curved arch is continued until the next pulse is computed by extrapolation to have zero pulse amplitude; identifying said valid systolic blood pressure as the cuff pressure at said zero pulse amplitude; and determining said valid systolic blood pressure without the cuff pressure reaching or exceeding said valid systolic blood pressure.