why do the nurses take my blodd pressure sitting and standing? they say something about fluid, can anyone explain

Some patients have a drop in pressure when standing. This is important to know for patients who walk out of the unit, being that you could get dizzy and fall.

isn't there something to do with diminished intravascular volume??

Well yes all patients usually have diminished intravascular volume post dialysis if they are set to remove fluid during treatment. As dialysis nurse stated, some patients BP drops when they stand and the staff need to know that when you leave and walk out your pressure is ok so you don't get dizzy and fall. It is a safety measure.

thankyou...so why do they do it at the beginning as well?

Actually they should check both sitting and standing blood pressures pre treatment to collect data and have something to compare post values to.

It is iportant to watch "trendng" in blood pressure. This is why we do pre and post B/P checks. I am less concerned with the actual numbers in B/P than I am with the amount of change in B/P after treatment. In other words, you may have an "ideal" B/P of 120/80, but it ay be hypotensive for you and cause problems. I hope this helps.

Jim