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Which instrument is used to measure the blood pressure manually ?
Explanation
Blood pressure is the force exerted by blood against the walls of blood vessels, typically measured in millimeters of mercury (mmHg) [2]. The standard instrument used for this measurement is the sphygmomanometer [2]. Manual sphygmomanometers, which include mercury and aneroid types, require a trained user to inflate a cuff using a handheld bulb and listen for Korotkoff sounds using a stethoscope. While mercury sphygmomanometers are considered the gold standard for accuracy, aneroid devices are common manual alternatives that use a mechanical dial instead of a liquid column [3]. In contrast, a centrifuge is used for separating substances of different densities, electrophoresis for separating DNA or proteins, and a thermal cycler for DNA amplification via PCR. Therefore, the sphygmomanometer is the only instrument listed designed for measuring blood pressure [2].
Sources
- [2] Science ,Class VIII . NCERT(Revised ed 2025) > Chapter 6: Pressure, Winds, Storms, and Cyclones > A step further > p. 87
- [3] https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC3340597/