From Newsgroup: comp.mobile.android

Do the blood pressure monitor apps actually work?

If they do, can anyone suggest one that doesn't involve giving your information to some unknown 'lawyers'.
--
Jim the Geordie

--- Synchronet 3.21f-Linux NewsLink 1.2

From Newsgroup: comp.mobile.android

Jim the Geordie wrote:

Do the blood pressure monitor apps actually work?

I wouldn't expect them to ...

--- Synchronet 3.21f-Linux NewsLink 1.2

From Newsgroup: comp.mobile.android

Jim the Geordie <[email protected]> wrote:

Do the blood pressure monitor apps actually work?

If they do, can anyone suggest one that doesn't involve giving your information to some unknown 'lawyers'.

I suspect you're pretty much stuck with whatever app matches your choice
of BPM (Blood Pressure Monitor). I've tried non-mfr apps, an either
they wouldn't connect to the BPM, or they had missing features. While
the BT connection is a standard protocol doesn't mandate the mfr must
use some universal protocol to transfer the data. You'll have to
experiment with a non-mfr app to see how well it works, if at all.

If the "app" is a mere front-end to an account where your readings are
stored, yes, there is a privacy issue. You had to create an account at
some website which likely means you have to give them a valid e-mail
address (although it could be an alias instead of your true e-mail
address). The Play store may only indicate if your personal info is
shared with other entities, but you'll have to read their TOS or privacy
policy to see just what they say they will do with your data. If
afraid, don't give them your true e-mail address. I use Anonaddy to use aliases that are created with a unique left token (username) to identify
to exactly who I gave out the alias, so I know who betrayed my trust if
I get spammed through that alias. Each alias is unique to each sender. Aliasing is not the same as forwarding. Forwarding will not hide your
true e-mail address, or your true e-mail provider, when you reply to a forwarded e-mail. Aliasing strips out the headers in your reply, so it
looks like your reply originated from the aliasing service. You can
kill (delete) or block aliases to prevent getting further spams through
an alias.

https://addy.io/

I used to use Spamgourmet, but its owner died, and his son didn't have
the expertise to correct problems, especially after server software
updates that screwed up the service. Might be dead now.

BPMs that affix a pressure cuff to your upper arm or wrist don't need
any app, but they may supply an app that record a history of your
readings. I have a Bluetooth-capable BPM, but find it cumbersome to
use, and the product's app isn't that great. I just enter the 3
readings (systolic & diastolic blood pressures, and pulse rate) into a spreadsheet that includes a chart where I can also add a trend line to
the systolic reading. Also, trying to export the data from an app can
be very difficult to impossible, and your doctor won't be looking at
your app on your phone to check your readings. I can hand a printout to
the doc of the spreadsheet to show progress, especially if meds are
changed.

Wrist BPMs are less accurate than upper arm BPMs. Since they don't
mandate use of an app (but some can communicate to an app), there is no
concern regarding privacy. Entirely your choice if you connect a
BT-capable BPM to an app on your phone. I'm not one of those that has
their phone grafted to their head, so my phone may not be close enough
to the BPM to use Bluetooth, anyway. Your health plan may even include
one for free, or at a large discount. Unless you have a severe medical condition that requires constant monitoring, a cuff-style BPM used once
a day is sufficient for tracking your blood pressure. I started at once
per day, but now check just once per week. Wearing a cuff-mounted BPM
all day long would get very tiresome very quickly. They're bulky.

Bluetooth BPMs are more expensive, and the mfr app can be inconvenient, lackluster in features, or downright a bear to use. You sure you really
want an app rather than an additional half minute to record the readings
into a spreadsheet? Some BPMs include averaging: you take a reading,
pause for a minute, take another reading, pause, and take a third, and
then average the 3 readings. A single reading can be a flyer (way off
from the average). If you sit with legs uncrossed for 5 minutes before
using the BPM, relax, and NOT think of anything stressful, often the 3
readings are close to each other. If you walk to wherever is the BPM,
sit, and take an immediate reading, that one will be a lot higher.
While the suggestion is 3 minutes apart for each reading, I just go with
1 minute between them (not including the time to take a reading, just
between the actual readings).
--- Synchronet 3.21f-Linux NewsLink 1.2

From Newsgroup: comp.mobile.android

On 12/4/26 4:08 pm, Jim the Geordie wrote:

Do the blood pressure monitor apps actually work?

You need to ask first if the monitors work. Which type of monitor? The
ones in a ring on a finger or wrist etc. are inaccurate and a waste of
time. The only monitors that can be relied on are those with an
inflatable cuff placed on the upper arm at the same level as the heart.
Not all of those are good enough - in the UK, only use those approved by
the British Hypertension Society. I'm not aware of any of those that
have monitoring apps, but I'm sure there are some by now - it's a long
time since we sold them in our pharmacy, and the newish one I have
personally is of the same old reliable type.

If they do, can anyone suggest one that doesn't involve giving your information to some unknown 'lawyers'.

The good ones only give information to whoever can see the readout.
--
Tetbury, Gloucestershire, UK
--- Synchronet 3.21f-Linux NewsLink 1.2

From Newsgroup: comp.mobile.android

VanguardLH wrote:

Jim the Geordie wrote:

Do the blood pressure monitor apps actually work?

I suspect you're pretty much stuck with whatever app matches your choice
of BPM (Blood Pressure Monitor).

Maybe I was imagining it, but I wondered if the app in question claimed
to be able to take your blood pressure by some 'magic' method such as
touching the phone to your skin, or using the camera?

Some of them seem to mention photoplethysmography, which I know pulse oximeters and smart watches use for SpO2 checking or maybe pulse rate,
but can't see how blood *pressure* can be measured that way?


--- Synchronet 3.21f-Linux NewsLink 1.2

From Newsgroup: comp.mobile.android

VanguardLH <[email protected]> wrote:

Jim the Geordie <[email protected]> wrote:

Do the blood pressure monitor apps actually work?

If they do, can anyone suggest one that doesn't involve giving your information to some unknown 'lawyers'.

I suspect you're pretty much stuck with whatever app matches your choice
of BPM (Blood Pressure Monitor). I've tried non-mfr apps, an either
they wouldn't connect to the BPM, or they had missing features. While
the BT connection is a standard protocol doesn't mandate the mfr must
use some universal protocol to transfer the data. You'll have to
experiment with a non-mfr app to see how well it works, if at all.

Gadgetbridge claims to support a couple of BPMs in the nightly releases. It
is intentionally local-only without network permission, so your data is
yours alone - no lawyers allowed.

https://gadgetbridge.org/gadgets/others/blood-pressure/

Theo
--- Synchronet 3.21f-Linux NewsLink 1.2

From Newsgroup: comp.mobile.android

Andy Burns wrote:

VanguardLH wrote:

Jim the Geordie wrote:

Do the blood pressure monitor apps actually work?

I suspect you're pretty much stuck with whatever app matches your choice
of BPM (Blood Pressure Monitor).

Maybe I was imagining it, but I wondered if the app in question claimed
to be able to take your blood pressure by some 'magic' method such as touching the phone to your skin, or using the camera?

Some of them seem to mention photoplethysmography, which I know pulse oximeters and smart watches use for SpO2 checking or maybe pulse rate,
but can't see how blood *pressure* can be measured that way?

I have no experience whatsoever in blood-pressure monitoring from a phone,
but I would have to look at how they claim to measure that to understand.

As we know, the common way to measure blood pressure is via a restrictive
cuff which squeezes off all blood flow and then slowly lets out the
pressure until the first and last "spurt" is measured. That's your BP.

Here's an article on the finger blood-pressure cuffs tied to your phone:
*Finger Blood Pressure Apps: How Accurate are They?*
<https://www.medm.com/company/blog/2024/how-accurate-are-finger-blood-pressure-apps.html>

That article lists all the known methods from Photoplethysmography, Pulse Transit Time, Oscillometric Estimation, Transdermal Optical Imaging, etc.

Nobody seems to be saying that they actually work (except advertisers).
*Blood pressure measurement using only a smartphone*
<https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC9259682/>

The problem is accuracy.
*Are Blood Pressure Apps Accurate?*
<https://biologyinsights.com/are-blood-pressure-apps-accurate-what-the-science-says/>

As for the OP's request for privacy, in my humblest of opinions, any good
app for any product or service, should be login-requirement free.

Very few apps "need" a login (e.g., an email server MUA is one of them).
But I have a thousand packages on my Android, none of which need a login.
--- Synchronet 3.21f-Linux NewsLink 1.2

From Newsgroup: comp.mobile.android

Andy Burns wrote:

Jim the Geordie wrote:

Do the blood pressure monitor apps actually work?

I wouldn't expect them to ...

I know plenty about electrical and biomedical engineering but I know
nothing about using a phone for biometric measurements such as BP.

The common recommendation in my quick skim of search results suggests the
best use of our smartphone is logging & analyzing the data from a real
monitor such as those from Omron, Withings & Qardio, all of whom make FDA-cleared devices that sync to our phone via Bluetooth.

To further help the OP, I ran a quick search for Android blood-pressure
apps and found this short list.
<https://www.bphealth.app/en/blog/best-blood-pressure-app-2026>

While out of my thousand packages, only one or two have ads (because almost
no functionality doesn't have a FOSS equivalent) this is one of them.
<https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.szyk.myheart>
"This app tracks & logs readings from a certified blood pressure monitor."

It doesn't say whether it needs a login, and, as I said, out of a thousand packages on my system, only one or two need a login (cartooning apps
mostly) so I'm sure the OP can find an app that doesn't require an account.
--
There are people who ask & those who help & many who won't do either.
--- Synchronet 3.21f-Linux NewsLink 1.2

From Newsgroup: comp.mobile.android

In article <[email protected]>, [email protected]
says...

On 12/4/26 4:08 pm, Jim the Geordie wrote:

Do the blood pressure monitor apps actually work?

You need to ask first if the monitors work. Which type of monitor? The
ones in a ring on a finger or wrist etc. are inaccurate and a waste of
time. The only monitors that can be relied on are those with an
inflatable cuff placed on the upper arm at the same level as the heart.
Not all of those are good enough - in the UK, only use those approved by
the British Hypertension Society. I'm not aware of any of those that
have monitoring apps, but I'm sure there are some by now - it's a long
time since we sold them in our pharmacy, and the newish one I have personally is of the same old reliable type.

If they do, can anyone suggest one that doesn't involve giving your information to some unknown 'lawyers'.

The good ones only give information to whoever can see the readout.

I think some of the apps claim to be able to measure blood pressure
directly fom the mobile while placing your finger over the light.
I could not see how that would work, but then I am a physicist not a
doctor.
--
Jim the Geordie
--- Synchronet 3.21f-Linux NewsLink 1.2

From Newsgroup: comp.mobile.android

Jim the Geordie <[email protected]> wrote:

I think some of the apps claim to be able to measure blood pressure
directly fom the mobile while placing your finger over the light.
I could not see how that would work, but then I am a physicist not a
doctor.

https://biospectal.com/

Since placing my finger over the camera lens in my smartphone results in
a totally black image, not sure how their app can see anything with all
light blocked with a finger over the camera lens. I haven't seen a
smartphone where the LED light is within the camera lens housing.

https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.biospectal.optibp.production

It is adware, so likely you need to pay to get a fully functional app.
"Try OptiBP™ for free". Maybe it is trialware.

Odd this app with a claimed +50K download count has no reviews.

This app has compatibility issues. Even for new smartphones, it will
not work with all of them. To check, I logged into the Play Store so I
could have it check the app's manifest with my recorded phone in my
Google account.

Samsung SM-S366V (returned)
Does not work on your device

That phone model (Samsung Galaxy A36) is 1 year old (released March
2025). Their app won't work with all new phones. The Store app page
did not give specifics as to which camera types will work with their
app. Here is their list of compatible phone models:

https://biospectalhelp.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/21196526960788-Does-OptiBP-support-my-smartphone-model

They mention the A32 and A35 models, but not the A36. When I compare
the A35 to the A36 at GSMarena, there is almost nothing different
between them. Before buying, I read many articles that said to go with
the cheaper A35 (it was an older model), but I wanted the 7-year update
term to start later with the A36 (same number of updates, but one
terminating at a later date). In the comparison, there is a little
difference between the camera on the A35 and A36.

https://www.gsmarena.com/compare.php3?idPhone1=12705&idPhone2=13497

You did not mention which make and model of smartphone you have, but
then you didn't mention any specifics, like Android version, either.
--- Synchronet 3.21f-Linux NewsLink 1.2

From Newsgroup: comp.mobile.android

From what I just gleamed from BIS (bispectral index score), it is not
intended to be anywhere near as accurate as a BPM (blood pressure
monitor) with a pressure cuff on your upper arm at the same level as
your heart. It is to indicate effectiveness of anethesia to guage how
much to administer, and hopefully reduce the level of anethesia,
especially for high-risk patients.

https://www.worldsiva.org/Allegati/ANCONA2006/1-03-ABSALOM_abstract.pdf

biospectal.com doesn't actually state just how their app can monitor
blood pressure from a camera which obviously has no means to detect
pressure. Supposedly they look at your blood vessels (which means some
light has to pass through your finger, so without the use of the camera
light then maybe you must be in a highly lighted room). I can look at a
tire to guess if it is inflated sufficiently to drive on, but I
certainly cannot tell by just looking at it what is the PSI of the air
inside the tire.

Their manual is at:

https://biospectalhelp.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/22381198846740-Printable-PDF

Their manual mentions "photoplethysmography (PPG) signal". Also
mentioned is "The blood pressure estimates displayed by OptiBP are
intended for informational use only." I would use a BPM that my doctor recommends, or I've seen them use.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Photoplethysmogram

So what about older folks where elasticity of the blood vessels is
reduced? Detecting a change in volume might indicate a change in
pressure, but due to a slew of other factors involved I cannot see there
is a one-to-one relationship between how much blood flows in an artery
versus the pressure of the blood within that artery.

The wiki article mentions the pulse oximeter uses light to illuminate
the arteries to see them pulsing. Putting your finger over a camera
lens means oblitering the light into the camera. Their manual says to
NOT cover the flash LED, so maybe they're expecting some of the flash
light to illuminate the finger tissue. They say to calibrate their app
on the phone every 4 weeks. Calibrate against what? Looks like you'll
need a BPM to measure your blood pressure to "calibrate" their app. In
their manual:

4.4. Calibrate OptiBP with a Cuff
Once the personal profile is set up, calibrate the app according to
the user’s personal physiological parameters by taking two sample
measurements with a cuff-based upper-arm blood pressure monitor.

Yep, so you'll need a BPM. If you have a BPM, why bother with this app?

Oh, and you have to setup a Google account, or provide an e-mail
address. I didn't bother to check their privacy policy since I can't
see this app with a smartphone will provide anything accurate compared
to using a BPM to monitor your blood pressure. They mention using AI,
but my guess is that is to provide an equivalent to a trend line in a
chart in a spreadsheet where you can record readings using a BPM.

I mentioned this might be trialware. Yep, according to their manual,
"Activate a subscription via Google Play after a period of free trial to continue using OptiBP." That records your readings to save in a profile
in an OptiBP account.

Even with this app, you have to create an account to record a profile of
your readings. Even with this app and your phone, you still need a BPM
(blood pressure monitor) against which to calibrate this app once a
month. Readings from this app are indicative, not conclusive.
--- Synchronet 3.21f-Linux NewsLink 1.2

From Newsgroup: comp.mobile.android

On 4/12/26 5:40 PM, VanguardLH wrote:

Since placing my finger over the camera lens in my smartphone results in
a totally black image, not sure how their app can see anything with all
light blocked with a finger over the camera lens. I haven't seen a >smartphone where the LED light is within the camera lens housing.

I've made home screen backgrounds that way. I put my finger over the lens
with a bright light behind it. It takes a dark bloody red colored photo
that makes a great (grisly?) home screen background. I've had some good
reactions when I've told someone using one of my tablets what they're
looking at... 8-O


--- Synchronet 3.21f-Linux NewsLink 1.2

From Newsgroup: comp.mobile.android

Jim the Geordie wrote:

some of the apps claim to be able to measure blood pressure
directly fom the mobile while placing your finger over the light.

1% glimmer of science*, 99% bullshit.

[*] because some medical devices do work by shining combinations of red/infrared/green light through skin, to read e.g. oxygen
concentration, but not AFAIK blood pressure, we wouldn't all be still
using inflatable cuffs if there was any accuracy in other methods ...


--- Synchronet 3.21f-Linux NewsLink 1.2

From Newsgroup: comp.mobile.android

AJL <[email protected]> wrote:

VanguardLH wrote:

Since placing my finger over the camera lens in my smartphone results
in a totally black image, not sure how their app can see anything
with all light blocked with a finger over the camera lens. I
haven't seen a smartphone where the LED light is within the camera
lens housing.

I've made home screen backgrounds that way. I put my finger over the
lens with a bright light behind it. It takes a dark bloody red
colored photo that makes a great (grisly?) home screen background.
I've had some good reactions when I've told someone using one of my
tablets what they're looking at... 8-O

When I read their manual, they don't mention shining a bright light on
the side of the finger opposite of the camera lens.
--- Synchronet 3.21f-Linux NewsLink 1.2

From Newsgroup: comp.mobile.android

Jim the Geordie <[email protected]> wrote:

In article <[email protected]>, [email protected]
says...

On 12/4/26 4:08 pm, Jim the Geordie wrote:

Do the blood pressure monitor apps actually work?

You need to ask first if the monitors work. Which type of monitor? The
ones in a ring on a finger or wrist etc. are inaccurate and a waste of
time. The only monitors that can be relied on are those with an
inflatable cuff placed on the upper arm at the same level as the heart.
Not all of those are good enough - in the UK, only use those approved by
the British Hypertension Society. I'm not aware of any of those that
have monitoring apps, but I'm sure there are some by now - it's a long
time since we sold them in our pharmacy, and the newish one I have
personally is of the same old reliable type.

If they do, can anyone suggest one that doesn't involve giving your
information to some unknown 'lawyers'.

The good ones only give information to whoever can see the readout.

I think some of the apps claim to be able to measure blood pressure
directly fom the mobile while placing your finger over the light.
I could not see how that would work, but then I am a physicist not a
doctor.

Check the certification. If it is certified with a CE mark or MHRA approval
as a class II (or Ia) medical device, then it is genuine. Anything else is snake oil.

--- Synchronet 3.21f-Linux NewsLink 1.2

From Newsgroup: comp.mobile.android

On 13/4/26 12:49 am, Jim the Geordie wrote:

In article <[email protected]>, [email protected]
says...

On 12/4/26 4:08 pm, Jim the Geordie wrote:

Do the blood pressure monitor apps actually work?

You need to ask first if the monitors work. Which type of monitor? The
ones in a ring on a finger or wrist etc. are inaccurate and a waste of
time. The only monitors that can be relied on are those with an
inflatable cuff placed on the upper arm at the same level as the heart.
Not all of those are good enough - in the UK, only use those approved by
the British Hypertension Society. I'm not aware of any of those that
have monitoring apps, but I'm sure there are some by now - it's a long
time since we sold them in our pharmacy, and the newish one I have
personally is of the same old reliable type.

If they do, can anyone suggest one that doesn't involve giving your
information to some unknown 'lawyers'.

The good ones only give information to whoever can see the readout.

I think some of the apps claim to be able to measure blood pressure
directly fom the mobile while placing your finger over the light.
I could not see how that would work, but then I am a physicist not a
doctor.

You are quite correct - it can't work.
--
Tetbury, Gloucestershire, UK
--- Synchronet 3.21f-Linux NewsLink 1.2

From Newsgroup: comp.mobile.android

On 2026-04-13 03:04, VanguardLH wrote:

4.4. Calibrate OptiBP with a Cuff
Once the personal profile is set up, calibrate the app according to
the user’s personal physiological parameters by taking two sample
measurements with a cuff-based upper-arm blood pressure monitor.

Yep, so you'll need a BPM. If you have a BPM, why bother with this app?

Not having to undress.
--
Cheers, Carlos.
ES🇪🇸, EU🇪🇺;
--- Synchronet 3.21f-Linux NewsLink 1.2

From Newsgroup: comp.mobile.android

"Carlos E.R." <[email protected]d> wrote:

On 2026-04-13 03:04, VanguardLH wrote:

4.4. Calibrate OptiBP with a Cuff
Once the personal profile is set up, calibrate the app according to
the user’s personal physiological parameters by taking two sample
measurements with a cuff-based upper-arm blood pressure monitor.

Yep, so you'll need a BPM. If you have a BPM, why bother with this app?

Not having to undress.

Doesn't address having to undress once a month to calibrate the phone
app using a real BPM. I take measurements once per week (not everyday
since my situation is not critical). That means I undress once per
month and not the other 3 times. Since the patient is susposed to check
at the same time every day after relaxing, the easiest time to measure
is when I get up, and I'm already undressed.

If your shirt sleeves are so tight that you cannot roll them up to use
the cuff on your bared upper arm, the cuff can be used over the sleeve.

https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC5368310/
"There were no statistically significant differences between
measurements taken over the sleeve and below a rolled-up sleeve"

Also, unless you are wearing a winter coat, you can measure over a shirt sleeve. No undressing needed. Don't know many folks wandering out to a
bench in their backyard during the cold winter to measure their BP. How
many sleeves cover your arm? For most people, it's just 1 sleeve.

Using the cuff over a sleeve is a lot more accurate than using the photoplethysmogram method watching blood vessels extend during a pulse.
PPG is to indicate change, like when applying anethesia before an
operation, not to provide accurate measurement.

How many of the available Android apps that claim to measure blood
pressure by using the phone's camera (with illumination through the
finger they often omit mentioning) claim certification by any medical organization? Just trying to find one that employs PPG is tough (I
found one with is not free but trialware) rather than a bunch of history
apps that you enter the data or use Bluetooth-enabled BPM to transfer
the data from the BPM to the phone app. The OP wasn't interested in a
tracker app, but a direct replacement for a traditional BPM.
--- Synchronet 3.21f-Linux NewsLink 1.2

From Newsgroup: comp.mobile.android

On 2026-04-14 08:52, VanguardLH wrote:

"Carlos E.R." <[email protected]d> wrote:

On 2026-04-13 03:04, VanguardLH wrote:

4.4. Calibrate OptiBP with a Cuff
Once the personal profile is set up, calibrate the app according to >>> the user’s personal physiological parameters by taking two sample >>> measurements with a cuff-based upper-arm blood pressure monitor.

Yep, so you'll need a BPM. If you have a BPM, why bother with this app?

Not having to undress.

Doesn't address having to undress once a month to calibrate the phone
app using a real BPM. I take measurements once per week (not everyday
since my situation is not critical). That means I undress once per
month and not the other 3 times. Since the patient is susposed to check
at the same time every day after relaxing, the easiest time to measure
is when I get up, and I'm already undressed.

If your shirt sleeves are so tight that you cannot roll them up to use
the cuff on your bared upper arm, the cuff can be used over the sleeve.

My nurse does that. I tried, yesterday, and got a very high reading.

https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC5368310/
"There were no statistically significant differences between
measurements taken over the sleeve and below a rolled-up sleeve"

Also, unless you are wearing a winter coat, you can measure over a shirt sleeve. No undressing needed. Don't know many folks wandering out to a bench in their backyard during the cold winter to measure their BP. How
many sleeves cover your arm? For most people, it's just 1 sleeve.

3.

Using the cuff over a sleeve is a lot more accurate than using the photoplethysmogram method watching blood vessels extend during a pulse.
PPG is to indicate change, like when applying anethesia before an
operation, not to provide accurate measurement.

How many of the available Android apps that claim to measure blood
pressure by using the phone's camera (with illumination through the
finger they often omit mentioning) claim certification by any medical organization? Just trying to find one that employs PPG is tough (I
found one with is not free but trialware) rather than a bunch of history
apps that you enter the data or use Bluetooth-enabled BPM to transfer
the data from the BPM to the phone app. The OP wasn't interested in a tracker app, but a direct replacement for a traditional BPM.

--
Cheers, Carlos.
ES🇪🇸, EU🇪🇺;
--- Synchronet 3.21f-Linux NewsLink 1.2

From Newsgroup: comp.mobile.android

Carlos E.R. wrote:

VanguardLH wrote:

the cuff can be used over the sleeve.

My nurse does that. I tried, yesterday, and got a very high reading.

I've seen Doctors recommend against it, and several other things that
will get you a bad one-off reading ...

--- Synchronet 3.21f-Linux NewsLink 1.2