Persistent high blood pressure in medicine has many names: hypertension, arterial hypertension, essential hypertension.The disease can damage the kidneys, heart, blood vessels, cause strokes, heart attacks, bleeding from stomach ulcers and other serious consequences.To prevent dangerous health conditions, it is necessary to take timely preventive measures and know the risk factors that significantly increase the likelihood of developing high blood pressure.
What is high blood pressure?
This is a chronic disease that develops due to dysfunction of blood vessel regulation, kidney and nervous mechanisms.Hypertension (HTN) is a dangerous condition of the body in which blood pressure (BP) continuously increases to levels above 140/90 mmHg.Art.in patients not taking antihypertensive drugs.
Hypertension accounts for about 40% of all cardiovascular diseases.The disease occurs more often in men than in women.The risk of developing the pathology in both sexes increases with age.Hypertension is mainly diagnosed in patients after 40 years of age, but recently the disease has been increasingly reported in adolescents and young adults.
Headache stages
Hypertension is a chronic disease with three stages of development.In adults, optimal blood pressure is 120/80 mmHg.Art.Small deviations from these indicators amount to 139/89 mm Hg.Art.standard also applies.Higher numbers in medical practice are considered pathological.A diagnosis of “hypertension” is made when readings above 140/90 are recorded repeatedly under different conditions.
Stage 1 hypertension is characterized by sudden changes in pressure.This indicated a pathological process occurring in the body.The disease in its early stages has almost no symptoms.Patients do not pay attention to some signs of hypertension, which explains the high proportion of late requests for professional help.Symptoms of stage 1 hypertension:
- Blood pressure index: from 140/90 to 159/99 mm Hg.Art.;
- headache;
- confusion;
- decreased mental performance;
- shortness of breath;
- fast heart rate;
- increased swelling;
- water retention in the body;
- change in quantity and color of urine.
Stage two hypertension is arterial hypertension that occurs at a moderate level.At this stage of the disease, the duration of hypertension is observed longer than at the beginning.Blood pressure readings in stage 2 hypertension rarely return to normal.Patient's condition:
- Blood pressure index: from 160/109 to 179/109 mm Hg.Art.;
- sleep disorders;
- discomfort in the heart area;
- heart failure;
- impaired memory and vision;
- constant discomfort;
- dizzy;
- tinnitus;
- pain in the back of the head;
- ocular vasodilation;
- facial congestion;
- swelling of the face and hands.
Stage three hypertension is a serious form of the disease.It is characterized by patients with a history of myocardial infarction, stroke and other serious pathologies.It is possible to completely cure high blood pressure at this stage in very rare cases, only when high blood pressure lasts for a short time or is secondary.Severe hypertension clinic:
- Blood pressure index: from 180/110 mm Hg.Art.or more;
- left ventricular hypertrophy;
- interventricular septum hypertrophy;
- impaired ability to coordinate movements;
- encephalopathy;
- ischemic or hemorrhagic infarction;
- various kidney damage;
- persistent visual impairment;
- prolonged hypertensive crisis;
- Paralysis and paralysis due to cerebral circulation disorders;
- limited ability to move independently and care for oneself.
Risk factors for high blood pressure
The development, progression and complications of arterial hypertension are directly related to the presence of risk factors for the occurrence of this pathological process.Hypertension is the result of a complex interaction between internal (endogenous) and external (exogenous) causes.The appearance of pathology is facilitated by acquired and congenital features of the body, weakening its ability to resist adverse external conditions.
Risk factors for developing arterial hypertension are classified according to two indicators: modifiable and non-modifiable.The first depends on a person's decisions and his lifestyle.These include:
- bad habits;
- physical inactivity;
- smoke;
- drinking alcohol;
- obesity and others.
Non-modifiable risk factors for hypertension are those that a person cannot influence: genetics and physiology (sex, age).In many cases, hypertension is a genetically transmitted disease.If one of your relatives has high blood pressure, there is a high chance that the next generation will be affected by the disease.Regarding physiological factors, according to statistics, middle-aged men are more susceptible to the disease.This is explained by the fact that women's bodies produce estrogen - a hormone with a protective function.
endogenous
Intrinsic risk factors for hypertension are the presence of diseases or conditions that cause high blood pressure.Among them:
- diabetes;
- atherosclerosis of the coronary arteries of the heart;
- increased blood viscosity;
- metabolic disorders;
- kidney disease (pyelonephritis, nephritis, glomerulonephritis);
- increased sodium or calcium levels in the blood;
- effects of adrenaline during stress;
- dyslipidemia (disorder of fat metabolism);
- increased uric acid content;
- circulatory dystonia;
- pregnant;
- menopause.
Related to lifestyle and environmental influences
Exogenous risk factors for hypertension are related to the patient's lifestyle.The number of acquired causes that can be successfully addressed is considerable, but each point can be easily corrected if one wishes.The main exogenous risk factors for hypertension:
- Insufficient physical activity.Continuously working in the office, only traveling by car, and not having time to go to the gym leads to a weakened respiratory system, impaired muscle function, and poor blood circulation.All of these factors cause an increase in blood pressure.
- Salt intake is not controlled.Sodium chloride in large quantities causes thirst and slows down the process of removing fluid from the body.Water increases circulating blood volume, so heart muscle contractions occur more frequently, leading to increased blood pressure.The rate of salt consumption should not exceed 5 g/day.
- Magnesium and/or potassium deficiency.The body needs these trace elements for blood vessels and heart muscles to function properly.Without them, there is a risk of high blood pressure.
Diagnose
Hypertension is determined by different methods - the blood pressure level is repeatedly measured with a sphygmomanometer and phone meter, studying the clinical picture of the disease, appointing clinical, physical and instrumental studies.Main diagnostic methods:
- Biochemical blood test.High/low density lipoprotein and cholesterol levels were detected and glucose levels were determined.These indicators are important to determine the cause of high blood pressure.
- ECG.The electrocardiogram has long been a reliable aid in the diagnosis of hypertension.ECG shows disruptions in the work of the heart, determines the presence of angina and provides data about the displacement of the heart from the electrical axis and the state of the myocardium.
- Echocardiography.The main vessels (carotid arteries) leading to the brain are illuminated to detect atherosclerotic plaques, evaluate the condition of the vessel walls and the risk of stroke.
- Angiography.X-ray method to study the walls of arteries and their lumens.
- Dopplerography.Ultrasound techniques to diagnose blood flow in veins, arteries and blood vessels.
- Kidney ultrasound.Helps identify large tumors in the adrenal gland and damage to kidney tissue, leading to renal hypertension.
- Thyroid ultrasound.Helps determine or rule out the influence of the thyroid gland on the development of hypertension in patients.
Treatment
Treatment of hypertension depends on the cause of the disease.The first thing patients need to do is eliminate all risks related to high blood pressure.Then, drug treatment is used in combination with non-drug methods: compliance with an anti-cholesterol diet, physical activity, quitting smoking and drinking alcoholic beverages.Drug treatment is carried out according to different schemes:
- Patients at low to moderate risk for high blood pressure are prescribed a medication to lower their blood pressure.
- Patients at high risk of cardiovascular disease are prescribed two or more drugs in separate doses.
The choice of medication and dosage is carried out by the doctor, taking into account the patient's age, accompanying pathologies and risk factors.Several groups of drugs are used to treat hypertension:
- Thiazide diuretics.They inhibit the absorption of chloride and sodium in the kidney tubules so that they do not enter the blood but are excreted from the body in the urine.
- Calcium channel blockers.They reduce the amount of calcium absorbed, as a result of which the load on the heart muscle decreases and blood pressure decreases.
- ACE inhibitors.They reduce the concentration of angiotensin hormone in the blood, a hormone that has the ability to narrow blood vessels, increasing blood pressure.
- Angiotensin II receptor antagonist.Reduce blood pressure in the early stages of hypertension.
- Beta blockers.They relax the walls of blood vessels, help improve blood circulation and normalize blood pressure.
- Central alpha-2 agonists.Heart rate decreases, manifested by a decrease in blood pressure.
- Direct vasodilator.Relaxes the smooth muscles of arterioles, causing a decrease in blood pressure.
- Renin inhibitors.They promote arterial dilation and inhibit the activity of renin, an enzyme that has vasoconstricting effects.