Question
I hope to be going into trucking in the near future. I have read that one of the "limitations or disqualifyers" on the DOT physical is blood pressure. What are the min/max? I was on prescribed medication for blood pressure for about 1.5 years (Lotrel). Can you qualify if you are on medication for BP now? Thanks in advance for the help...
Answer
Dan,
I'm sure that Nurse Red will go more into depth with you on this, but we have discussed this previously on the Forums.
To the best of my knowledge....if you are under the care of a physician...on medication...and that medication is keeping your BP within normal/acceptable range....and there are no other disqualifying factors....you may still drive.
Mary
[This message has been edited by Mary (edited 03-10-99).]
Answer
Dan,
The regulations state that your blood pressure must be below 160/90 to allow you to be medically qualified.
If you are newly diagnosed as a hypertensive person, treatment with medications may be initiated and a 3 month card issued. In three months, if your medication is still controlling your blood pressure, you may be issued a 6 month or one year card. This will be at the discretion of the physician performing the exam.
Providing that your medications keep your blood pressure below 160/90 you will not be disqualified. However, some companies have a company policy that will lower the requirement. For example, they will not accept a blood pressure that is above 150/90. But they must have a written policy stating such.
Keeping you safe, healthy, and on the road.
Nurse RedVisit us at
Answer
Nurse Red,
Is this deal with the 3 month & 6 month card actually a requirement per the regulations or something that is done at the request of a specific company, because this is the first time that I have ever heard of a driver being issued a card to carry while he/she is under treatment for high blood pressure. None of the drivers whom I have ever worked with previously who were under the care of a physician for high BP were ever issued a card of any kind. All that was required by the company was a statement from the physician certifying that you were under a doctor's care for this condition and that your BP was within the guidelines as stated in the regs.....thus you were qualified to drive. Is this card issuance deal something new that has come along?
Thank You
Mary
Answer
Mary,
Let me refer you to section 391.41 (b)(6) of the FHWA regs.
The feds used the 1984 report of the Joint National Committee on Detection, Evaluation, and Treatment of High Blood pressure to make the following guidelines.
Mild hypertension- 161-180 (systolic, the top number and/or 91-104 (diastolic, the bottom number. The driver is given one 3 month period to reduce the BP to below 160/90.
If at any time, the BP is below 160/90-the driver may be issued a one year card but a BP check must be done within the first 3 months of the one year card.
They must then be certified yearly thereafter as opposed to every 2 years.
Moderate to Severe hypertension-Systolic greater than 180 and/or diastolic greater than 104. No card until the blood pressure is less than 181/105. Then a three month card. If at any time during the 3 months the driver has a BP of less than 160/90 he may have a 6 month card with a blood pressure check within 3 months. Recertification should then occur every 6 months.
Hope this makes sense to you. Let me know if you would like further clarification. I do tend to ramble at times.
Keeping you safe, healthy, and on the road.
Nurse RedVisit us at
Answer
Nurse Red,
Thanks for sharing all that information! I was not trying to be argumentative. As a matter of fact, when I initially read your response....I thought that you were referring to a separate card being issued for the BP problem, and that's where I was thrown off track. One of my "blonde" moments.
I guess that the key word here is "MAY", and that would explain what I was questioning. It appears that it is up to the doctor and the request of an individual company as to whether or not to issue a card for the shorter duration.
Once again....Thanks
Mary
[This message has been edited by Mary (edited 03-11-99).]