Hypertension
Hypertension, which is also commonly known as high blood pressure is a medical condition where ones blood pressure is chronically elevated. It is a serious condition that can lead to coronary heart disease, heart failure, stroke, kidney failure, as well as other problems related to health.
Hypertension in itself usually manifests no symptoms although some people report headaches, fatigue, dizziness, blurred vision, facial flushing, transient insomnia or difficulty sleeping due to feeling hot or flushed, and tinnitus during beginning onset or prior to the diagnosis of hypertension. Usually, the condition is just incidentally found by a healthcare professional when a routine checkup is done.
The only test that can be done to know if one has hypertension is for blood pressure to be measured. Blood pressure is the force of blood that push against the walls of the arteries. Each time that the heart beats, it also pumps out blood into the arteries. Ones blood pressure is at the highest when the heart beats and pumps the blood, this is what is called systolic pressure. On the other hand, when the heart is at rest, in-between beats, the blood pressure falls and this is then called the diastolic pressure.
The reading for blood pressure makes use of two numbers, the systolic and diastolic pressures, which is usually written one above or before the other. A reading of 120/80 or lower is considered normal blood pressure, 140/90 or higher reading is high blood pressure and having a blood pressure of 120 and 139 for the top number, or between 80 and 89 for the bottom number is then a condition called prehypertension wherein one is identified to be at high risk of developing hypertension.
Hypertension has two classifications; it can either be essential (primary) or secondary. In essential hypertension no specific medical cause can be found to explain a patient's condition while in a secondary hypertension the high blood pressure is a result of another condition, such as kidney disease or tumours (pheochromocytoma and paraganglioma).
Though regarded as a serious medical condition, yet, hypertension can be controlled by having a healthy lifestyle habits such as weight reduction, regular aerobic exercises, reducing sugar and sodium (salt) in the , avoiding tobacco use and alcohol consumption as well as minimizing stress along with the regular intake of medicines, if needed.
By: Jhayknee
Hypertension Recommended Resources:
University of Maryland Medical Center
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