Oscillometric or Korotkoff blood pressure measurement?
Blood pressure measurement by Korotkoff
When a doctor uses a stethoscope, they determine the readings from the sounds of the blood flow. This method was developed by the physician Nikolai S. Korotkow and is called the Korotkow (or Korotkoff) method. Korotkow presented this technique on 8 Nov 1905 at a seminar in St. Petersburg. The sounds heard during the blood pressure measurement are called Korotkoff sounds. With the Korotkoff method, systolic and diastolic blood pressure are measured separately; with the oscillometric method, the two values are derived from the oscillation.Oscillometric blood pressure measurement
Most digital blood pressure monitors measure blood pressure oscillometrically. They record the oscillations of the pulsing blood and calculate the blood pressure from those signals.
Modern blood pressure monitors use the oscillometric method; before approval they are validated to ensure that the displayed values match those from the Korotkow measurement.
Illustration: measuring with an oscillometric blood pressure monitor
1. Die Manschette wird angelegt.
2. Die Manschette wird aufgepumpt, bis sie den Blutfluss unterbricht.
3. Beim Ablassen der Luft werden die Schwingungen im Blutfluss registriert.
4. Fließt das Blut wieder ohne Verwirbelungen, ist die Messung beendet.
Sources:
This article comes from BloodPressureDB – the leading app since 2011 that helps hundreds of thousands monitor their blood pressure every day.
Our content is based on carefully researched, evidence-based data and is continuously updated (as of 11/2025).
Author Sabine Croci is a qualified medical assistant with many years of experience in internal medicine and cardiology practices as well as in outpatient care, and has led BloodPressureDB's specialist editorial team since 2015. Thanks to her extensive additional qualifications as a paramedic, first responder and in various therapy and emergency areas, she provides solid, practical and reliably reviewed information.
Author Sabine Croci is a qualified medical assistant with many years of experience in internal medicine and cardiology practices as well as in outpatient care, and has led BloodPressureDB's specialist editorial team since 2015. Thanks to her extensive additional qualifications as a paramedic, first responder and in various therapy and emergency areas, she provides solid, practical and reliably reviewed information.
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