Systolic blood pressure is defined as which of the following?

• A. Pressure in arteries during relaxation phase between beats
• B. Pressure in arteries at rest
• C. Pressure in veins during contraction
• D. Pressure in arteries as heart contracts and forces blood out through them into body

Answer: (D)

Systolic pressure is the peak arterial pressure that occurs when the heart contracts and forces blood out into the arteries. It happens during the heartbeat’s contraction phase (systole), when the ventricles push blood into the arterial tree and the pressure reaches its highest point in the cycle. The other descriptions refer to pressures during the heart’s relaxation (diastole), or to veins, which are not what systolic arterial pressure measures. So the statement describing arterial pressure as the heart contracts and pushes blood into the arteries best captures what systolic pressure is.