Dr. Kaustubh Dabhadkar

Kaustubh Dabhadkar, MD, MPH, FACC, is a board-certified cardiologist focused on preventive cardiology. I built BP Log and I write and medically review every guide on this site. I also share heart health education as HeartDocKD.

• Board-certified in adult cardiology, advanced echocardiography, nuclear cardiology
• Fellow of the American College of Cardiology (FACC)
• Trained at Emory University
• Practices at Novant Health Heart & Vascular Institute, Charlotte, NC

My work is prevention: finding high blood pressure early and treating it before it damages the heart, brain, or kidneys. Home readings are one of the best tools we have for that, but only when they're taken the right way. BP Log and these guides follow the method the 2025 AHA/ACC high blood pressure guideline recommends: two readings about a minute apart, morning and evening, averaged.

Find me as HeartDocKD on heartdockd.com, Instagram, and X.

How these guides are written

Every guide cites its sources, links to them, and shows the date I last reviewed it. I review each one again when a major guideline changes. The guides are educational: they explain what numbers mean and when to see a doctor, but they can't diagnose you or replace care from your own clinician.

Spotted something wrong or out of date? Email [email protected].

Guides

• Why is my blood pressure different every time I check it?
• White coat hypertension: how home readings confirm it (or rule it out)
• Stage 1 vs Stage 2 Hypertension: What 130/80 and 140/90 Mean
• How to share blood pressure readings with your doctor
• Pulse pressure and mean arterial pressure (MAP) calculator
• Free printable blood pressure log sheet (PDF)
• Orthostatic blood pressure test at home: how to check safely
• Best time to take blood pressure: morning vs evening
• First blood pressure reading higher than second: why it happens
• Elevated Blood Pressure (120-129): What It Means and What to Do
• Best free blood pressure app for iPhone (2026): a cardiologist's checklist
• Blood Pressure Chart by Age: What's Normal for Men and Women
• Does Apple Watch measure blood pressure? What it can and can't do
• AHA Blood Pressure Guidelines 2025: What the New Guideline Says
• How to check blood pressure at home: a step-by-step guide
• Blood Pressure Chart: The 2025 Categories Explained