Systolic blood pressure is the pressure created when the heart contracts (squeezes) and pumps oxygen-rich blood into the blood vessels. The pressure in the blood arteries when the heart muscle relaxes is referred to as diastolic blood pressure. Blood pressures are measured with a sphygmomanometer, which is an instrument used by doctors to measure blood pressure. There are several methods used to obtain reliable readings from a patient's blood pressure, but the auscultatory method is considered the gold standard. This article discusses how systolic blood pressure is measured. Systolic blood pressure is measured during the medical examination that includes taking your history and performing a physical examination. This measurement helps identify patients at risk for cardiovascular disease and organ damage. It is also used to monitor treatment success. Patients may have their blood pressure taken any number of times over a period of time. The most accurate reading will be obtained by having the patient sit down and relax for 10 minutes before taking the measurement. A second reading may be taken after the patient has been standing for five minutes if there is no change in blood pressure between sitting and standing. The auscultatory method involves hearing the sound of blood flowing through blood vessels with special stethoscopes. When you listen to the lungs using a stethoscope, you can hear air moving in and out of the lungs called lung sounds.