Information on High Blood Pressure & Hypertension

Understanding High Blood Pressure & Hypertension

If you have high blood pressure or hypertension, you’re not alone. Almost one-third of Americans have this potentially dangerous disease. Hypertension causes your arteries to have greater resistance against your blood flow, making your heart work harder to circulate blood. This significantly increases your risk of coronary heart disease, heart attack and stroke. While hypertension is cause for concern, you can still maintain an active, enjoyable lifestyle if you manage your disease properly.

Measuring Blood Pressure

When a nurse or doctor places a blood pressure cuff around your arm and listens to your chest with a stethoscope, he or she is measuring your blood pressure. Blood pressure is the force of blood pushing against your artery walls. With every heartbeat, blood enters the arteries. As the heart contracts, your blood pressure is at its highest point.

Two numbers are used to measure blood pressure. The top number or “systolic pressure” is the pressure inside the artery when your heart contracts and pumps blood through your body. The bottom number or “diastolic pressure” is the pressure inside the artery when your heart is resting and filling with blood. The recommended pressure for a healthy adult is less than 120/80 mmHg.

Risk Factors

The following factors increase your risk of high blood pressure:

• Obesity
• Heavy alcohol consumption
• Family history
• Being African American
• Having diabetes, gout or kidney disease
• Age-men in the early to late adult years andwomen in their middle to later adult years
• Oral contraceptives
• Smoking
• Stress
• Excessive salt intake
• Certain medications (non-steroidal inti-inflammatory drugs, some migraine and weight loss drugs)

Symptoms

Generally, there are no recognizable symptoms associated with hypertension. In fact, many people aren’t aware that they have the disease. Therefore, if you have a family history of hypertension and/or other risk factors, have your blood pressure checked regularly. If your blood pressure reaches very high levels, you may experience some of the following symptoms:

• Throbbing in your chest, neck or ears
• Irregular heartbeat
• Chest pain
• Shortness of breath
• Extreme headache
• Blurred vision
• Weakness
• Confusion
• Blood in the urine

These symptoms signal that your cardiovascular health is in jeopardy. Left untreated, they can lead to a stroke or heart attack, so see your doctor right away.

Treatment

Besides heart attack or stroke, untreated hypertension has other serious consequences, including vision problems and kidney failure. By making some simple lifestyle modifications, you can get control of the situation. Eating a healthy diet, getting sufficient exercise, watching your alcohol intake and your weight and reducing stress, are all beneficial. Medication also works well for many people.

The caring staff at South Miami Heart Center have the expertise and resources necessary to help manage your hypertension. They can design a lifestyle plan to enhance your health and longevity.

Physician Referral

Get an online referral to a South Miami Heart Center physician or call the South Miami Heart Center Physician Referral line at 786-662-2222.