Your Mean Arterial Pressure (MAP) reflects the average pressure driving blood flow to your organs throughout the cardiac cycle. A normal MAP in healthy adults is typically 70 to 105 mmHg. A MAP of 65 mmHg or above is generally considered the minimum threshold for adequate perfusion of vital organs including the brain, kidneys, and heart.

A MAP below 60 mmHg is concerning for organ hypoperfusion and may result in end-organ damage if sustained. In the context of sepsis, the Surviving Sepsis Campaign guidelines recommend targeting a MAP of at least 65 mmHg using fluids and vasopressors. Patients with chronic hypertension may require higher MAP values (70-80 mmHg or above) to maintain adequate organ perfusion because their autoregulatory curves are shifted to the right.

A MAP above 105 mmHg may indicate hypertension requiring treatment, particularly in the context of acute conditions such as hypertensive emergency, stroke, or aortic dissection. In neurological critical care, MAP is used to calculate cerebral perfusion pressure (CPP = MAP minus intracranial pressure), which is a key target in traumatic brain injury management.

MAP should be calculated whenever a comprehensive hemodynamic assessment is needed, particularly in critical care, emergency medicine, and anesthesia settings. It is the preferred blood pressure parameter for titrating vasopressor therapy in septic shock, guiding fluid resuscitation, and setting blood pressure targets in the ICU. Many vasopressor protocols and order sets reference MAP rather than systolic blood pressure.

This calculator is also useful for calculating cerebral perfusion pressure in patients with traumatic brain injury or other causes of elevated intracranial pressure, for assessing renal perfusion adequacy, and for evaluating blood pressure in patients on arterial line monitoring where MAP is continuously displayed. It can help clinicians quickly determine whether a patient's blood pressure is adequate for end-organ perfusion.

The formula MAP = (SBP + 2 x DBP) / 3 is an approximation that assumes diastole occupies two-thirds of the cardiac cycle. This assumption becomes less accurate at higher heart rates (where diastolic time shortens proportionally more than systolic time) and in patients with significant arrhythmias. Invasive arterial monitoring provides a more accurate MAP by integrating the actual pressure waveform.

MAP is a global measure of perfusion pressure and does not account for regional blood flow distribution. Adequate MAP does not guarantee adequate perfusion to all organs — microcirculatory dysfunction, as seen in sepsis, can cause tissue hypoperfusion despite a normal MAP. Additional markers such as lactate, urine output, and central venous oxygen saturation should be used alongside MAP.

Optimal MAP targets vary by clinical context and patient characteristics. The standard target of 65 mmHg in sepsis may be insufficient for patients with chronic hypertension, while it may be higher than necessary for young, previously healthy patients. Individualized MAP targets based on the patient's baseline blood pressure and clinical response are recommended.