What it means
A unit of pressure. It comes from old blood pressure machines that measured how high the pressure could push a column of mercury, in millimeters. Today it is still the unit for blood pressureBLUD PRESH-erThe force of blood pushing against the walls of the arteries, written as systolic over diastolic in mm Hg.Full entry (120/80 mm Hg), for blood gases such as PaO2 and PaCO2 on an arterial blood gasar-TEER-ee-ul BLUD GASA blood test from an artery that measures oxygen, carbon dioxide, bicarbonate and the blood's pH.Full entry , and for intracranial pressurein-truh-KRAY-nee-ul PRESH-erThe pressure inside the skull, made by the brain, the blood and the fluid around the brain.intra- insidecrani/o skull-al relating toFull entry .
In a chart
"BP 134/82 mm Hg, left arm, sitting."
At a glance
| Spanish | milímetros de mercurio (mm Hg) |
|---|---|
| Also written | mmHg, millimeters of mercury |
Related terms
blood pressure
The force of blood pushing against the walls of the arteries, written as systolic over diastolic in mm Hg.
intracranial pressure
The pressure inside the skull, made by the brain, the blood and the fluid around the brain.
arterial blood gas
A blood test from an artery that measures oxygen, carbon dioxide, bicarbonate and the blood's pH.