# Arrange pulse and blood pressure checks

Published by Pawel Jozefiak. [About this project](https://adhd100.jock.pl/about/), [How we check sources](https://adhd100.jock.pl/methodology/)

- Canonical: https://adhd100.jock.pl/check-pulse-blood-pressure/
- Language: en
- First published: 2026-09-29
- Evidence checked: 2026-09-29, using AI-assisted source verification
- Clinical review: Not clinically reviewed
- Number 14 of 100 in the list: https://adhd100.jock.pl/#check-pulse-blood-pressure

Routine cardiovascular monitoring helps your clinician spot medication effects that symptoms alone may miss.

**The number:** Check pulse and blood pressure every 6 months ([NICE, 2019](https://www.nice.org.uk/guidance/ng87/chapter/Recommendations))

## The evidence

- How sure: Certainty of evidence: Guideline advice, not formally graded. Measured in people with ADHD.
- Evidence grade: A. Grade A: moderate or high certainty evidence in people with ADHD, or an explicit ADHD guideline recommendation.
- Basis: NICE NG87 1.7.4 and 1.8.9; evidence review D: consensus schedule, safety evidence mostly very low to moderate quality
- Outcome: routine pulse and blood pressure monitoring interval
- Comparison: NICE NG87 1.8.9, plus checks before and after each dose change
- Benefit: 76/100. The benefit score is an editorial prioritization for the general list, weighted by certainty. It is not a prediction of what will happen for you.

## Why it matters

ADHD medicines can change heart rate and blood pressure, sometimes in different directions. NICE recommends checking both before treatment, before and after each dose change, and every 6 months, though its own evidence review calls that schedule committee consensus, because most trials were short. Monitoring does not mean everyone needs an ECG, and one odd reading does not prove a medicine is unsuitable.

## How to do it

1. Find out who is responsible for your pulse and blood pressure checks.
2. Make sure the checks around any recent changes your clinician made have been done.
3. Tell the clinician about fainting, palpitations, or heart problems in you or your family.
4. Ask how the results reach the prescriber and when the next check is due.

## Talk to a clinician first

New chest pain, fainting or significant palpitations need prompt medical assessment. A clinician should interpret readings and decide whether further tests are needed.

## Putting it into practice

### Start now

- 1 minute: Check your calendar: do you know when your next pulse and blood pressure check is?
- 5 minutes: Look at your appointment record, and if the next check isn't clear, contact the service in charge.
- 15 minutes: Write a short note for your clinician on heart symptoms, family history and recent treatment changes.

### What it looks like

- Ask whether your primary care team or the ADHD clinic is doing the next check.
- Bring up any fainting or family heart problems at the monitoring appointment.

### Common mistakes

- Feeling fine does not replace the scheduled checks. Confirm when yours are due.
- One reading needs a clinician to interpret it, so share it instead of changing treatment yourself.

### A structured start

**Keep monitoring connected to prescribing**

1. Confirm the monitoring service and schedule.
2. Attend the arranged checks and report relevant symptoms.
3. Make sure the prescriber receives the results.

### Trusted how-to guides

- [Tips for Talking With a Health Care Provider About Your Mental Health](https://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/publications/tips-for-talking-with-your-health-care-provider), NIMH

## Sources

- [Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder: diagnosis and management (NG87), recommendations](https://www.nice.org.uk/guidance/ng87/chapter/Recommendations), NICE, 2019 (Tier 1 guideline)
- [Clinical Practice Guideline for the Diagnosis, Evaluation, and Treatment of ADHD in Children and Adolescents](https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC7067282/), American Academy of Pediatrics, 2019 (Tier 1 guideline)
- [ADHD evidence review D: pharmacological safety (NG87)](https://www.nice.org.uk/guidance/ng87/evidence/d-pharmacological-safety-pdf-4783686304), NICE, 2018 (Tier 1 guideline)

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General information about ADHD, not a diagnosis or an individual treatment plan. Tailoring changes the order of suggestions; it does not assess you. Medication decisions belong with you and a qualified clinician.

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