NormRangeWhat the normal range is at your age — with the source printed on the page.

Blood pressure 148 over 94

148/94 mmHg
Hypertension stage 2
by the 2017 ACC/AHA categories — placed there by both numbers
148/94 mmHg — Hypertension stage 21201301408090systolic up the side, diastolic across — dashed lines are the 2017 ACC/AHA thresholds
CategoryACC/AHA 2017Hypertension stage 2
What puts it thereboth numbers
Systolic (top)stage 2 range148mmHg
Diastolic (bottom)stage 2 range94mmHg
Pulse pressuretypical range is 30–5054mmHg
Mean arterial pressurediastolic + one third of the pulse pressure112mmHg

Notes

  • One reading is not a diagnosis. Blood pressure varies through the day by 10 to 20 mmHg and rises with a full bladder, recent caffeine, conversation, and the walk in from the car park. A diagnosis rests on an average of two or more readings on two or more separate occasions.
  • The categories use "or", not "and", from stage 1 downward. 148/94 is in the stage 2 hypertension range because of both numbers. A reading of 135/75 is stage 1 on the top number alone, and a normal bottom number does not rescue it — which is the single most common misreading of this table.
  • Measure it so the number means something. Sit quietly five minutes first, back supported, feet flat, legs uncrossed. Arm resting at heart level. Cuff on bare skin and the correct size — a cuff too small is the most common cause of a falsely high reading, and on an upper arm over about 13 inches the standard cuff that came with the monitor is usually wrong. No talking during the measurement. Take two readings a minute apart and record both.
  • The current guideline gives no separate target by age. Blood pressure does rise with age in most populations because arteries stiffen, so the average 70-year-old reads higher than the average 30-year-old — but the 2017 guideline moved the threshold down to 130/80 for all adults precisely because outcome data did not support treating a higher number as acceptable simply because it was common.

What 148/94 is

A reading of 148/94 mmHg falls into Hypertension stage 2 under the 2017 ACC/AHA categories.

It is placed there by both numbers.

One reading is not a diagnosis

Blood pressure varies through the day by 10 to 20 mmHg. It rises with a full bladder, recent caffeine, a conversation, and the walk in from the car park.

A diagnosis rests on an average of two or more readings on two or more separate occasions — and home readings taken calmly are often more representative than clinic ones. White coat hypertension is common enough to be a named phenomenon, and so is its opposite.

The categories, and the word that trips people

Category Systolic Diastolic
Normal under 120 and under 80
Elevated 120–129 and under 80
Stage 1 130–139 or 80–89
Stage 2 140 or higher or 90 or higher
Crisis over 180 and/or over 120

"Or", not "and", from stage 1 down. A reading of 135/75 is stage 1 on the top number alone, and a normal bottom number does not rescue it. That is the single most common misreading of this table.

Measuring so the number means something

  • Sit quietly for 5 minutes first. Back supported, feet flat, legs uncrossed.
  • Arm resting at heart level, supported. An unsupported arm reads several mmHg high.
  • Cuff on bare skin, correct size. A cuff too small is the most common cause of a falsely high reading — on an upper arm over about 13 inches, the standard cuff that came with the monitor is usually the wrong one.
  • No talking during the measurement.
  • No caffeine, exercise or smoking in the previous 30 minutes.
  • Take two readings a minute apart and record both.

Age does not change the target

The current guideline gives no separate normal for older adults. Blood pressure does rise with age in most populations because arteries stiffen, so the average 70-year-old reads higher than the average 30-year-old.

But the 2017 guideline moved the diagnostic threshold down to 130/80 for all adults, precisely because the outcome data did not support treating a higher number as acceptable simply because it was common. Charts online that print a higher "normal" by age are showing descriptive averages, not targets.

What the other two numbers mean

Pulse pressure — the gap between the two — is 54 mmHg here. A typical range is 30 to 50. A wide pulse pressure in older adults usually reflects arterial stiffening.

Mean arterial pressure is 112 mmHg: diastolic plus a third of the pulse pressure. It is the figure clinicians use when perfusion matters, and it is rarely shown on a home monitor.

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