What it means
Systolic blood pressure is the top number of a blood pressureBLUD PRESH-erThe force of blood pushing against the walls of the arteries, written as systolic over diastolic in mm Hg.Full entry reading: the pressure in the arteries when the heart contracts. In liver disease, SBP also means spontaneous bacterial peritonitis, an infection of the fluid in the belly (ascites). Read it in context.
Related terms
hypertension
Blood pressure that stays higher than normal, at or above 130/80 mm Hg by current US guidelines.
blood pressure
The force of blood pushing against the walls of the arteries, written as systolic over diastolic in mm Hg.
hypotension
Blood pressure lower than normal, generally below 90/60 mm Hg in an adult.