BACKGROUND: Accurate blood pressure measurement is dependent on using a blood pressure cuff that is appropriate to the patient's arm circumference. OBJECTIVE: This study identifies the change in distribution of arm circumferences in the United States and its impact on usage of the 'standard adult' cuff. METHOD: The most current National Health and Nutritional Examination Survey (NHANES) data, available on the website (somekeyword), covers NHANES III (Cycle 1, 1988-1991; 8381 subjects and Cycle 2, 1991-1994; 8566 subjects) and NHANES 2000 (1999-2000; 4,444 subjects). The weighted change in arm circumference between NHANES III as a whole and NHANES 2000 was calculated. Correlates for increased arm circumference were obtained via multivariate analysis. The predicted change in blood pressure cuff usage based on the changing prevalence of arm circumferences was calculated. RESULTS: The mean arm circumference for the whole population increased significa!
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