Unusual blood pressure. 146/0 ??????

Question

My brother in law has had heart palpitations recently and has also started to have chest pains. He went to see his local GP and when they took his blood pressure it came back as 146/0. The Doctor thought maybe it was his machine, so he changed it and it was still the same. After several attempts, he called in another Doctor and he had a go, only to get the same results. They have refered him to Kings College Hospital and he is there today waiting for an ECG and other test to be done. He is quite fit and works out a lot, but His diet is not that healthy. He believes that because he works out, he can eat what he wants. As an X nurse I disagree, but I am not a doctor and I have never heard of a blood pressure result like this. I know they can come up abnormal in pregnancy and in athletes. Has anyone heard about something like this and would they be able to give my sister a bit of peace of mind while she is waiting for him to get his results.

Answer 1

i don't believe you're an ex nurse.....if you are you'd know that you can't have 0!!!

i'd be happy to answer a proper question

Answer 2

Sounds like trouble to me!

Answer 3

your brother may have "Aortic Regurgitation",he must visit cardiologist for assessing heart sound.

Answer 4

I hope they tested the equipment- you cant get that reading and still be walking about normally!  

Answer 5

Sometimes the 5th korotkoff sound (the noise they listen for to determine the diastolic reading) can be absent, therefore giving a zero reading. though this is more common in children and pregnant women. Although it is present in those with high cardiac output, which is probably why he was referred. Usually practitioners will do the reading from the 4th korotkoff sound, giving a value of 60-70 as norm. After just re-reading your question, I hope they weren't just relying on a machine and were checking manually as well!  

Answer 6

There is something wrong with the people taking the blood pressure.  A 0 would mean they are dead, which apparently your brother in law is not.  

Answer 7

eeessshhhh...my husbands is L O W  (100/50 usually) but I've never heard of a zero...(and I've seen a LOT of Dr's and patients...)

Answer 8

Is your brother the sort of person to exaggerate and occasionally make up stories, wonder how many other stories he has had you on with