Blood pressure is defined as the force or pressure exerted by flowing blood against the walls of the arteries. It is highest during systole when the heart beats and lowest during diastole when the heart relaxes in-between beats.
For normal blood pressure, the systolic number has to be less than 120 mmHg, whereas the diastolic number is to be less than 80mmHg.
When your number increases it suggests that you are increasing the risk of stroke, and heart and kidney disease.
Blood pressure varies throughout the day depending on:
Body Position.
Physical Condition.
What you eat or drink.
What all medications are consumed.
Stress level.
Smoking habit.
Hypertension: It is a condition in which the force of the blood against the artery wall is too high, usually systolic blood pressure greater than 140 mmHg and diastolic blood pressure above 90mmHg or both over a sustained period.
The 4 stages of hypertension include:
Stage 1 - Prehypertension- The blood pressure range is from 120/80 to 139/89
Stage 2 - Mild hypertension readings range from 140 / 90 to 159/99 mmHg.
Stage 3 - Moderate Hypertension readings range from 160 / 100 to 179/109 mmHg.
Stage 4 - Severe Hypertension ranges from 180/120 mmHg or higher.
Severe effects of hypertension can cause symptoms such as:
Fatigue
Nausea
Vomiting
Nose Bleeding
Heart palpitation
Headache
Shortness of breath
As per gender difference, men are more likely to develop high bp than women. But after menopause, however, women are more likely to suffer from blood pressure than men. Having a close family background with high blood pressure can also develop the risk of hypertension. Symptoms of extremely high blood pressure can lead to severe headaches, blood coming out through urine, problems in vision, and heartbeat being irregular, and severe chest pain, which increases the workload on the heart.
Risks of hypertension
Coronary atherosclerosis
Atherosclerosis is nothing but a plaque buildup in the arteries.
When it occurs in the arteries which supply blood to the heart it is mostly called CAD (coronary artery disease)
The correlation of high bp to this is that high bp adds force to the artery walls. Over time, it may damage the blood vessels and lead to the buildup of more plaque. The artery limits that are narrowed may block the flow of blood to the heart muscle, due to not getting enough oxygen, leading to a heart attack or stroke.
Heart failure
High bp may also bring on heart failure by causing left ventricular hypertrophy, a thickening of the heart muscle that results in less effective muscle relaxation between heartbeats, which makes it difficult for the heart to get filled up with enough blood to supply it to the body organs. Symptoms can be shortness of breath, facing difficulty in bed, etc.
Renal hypertension
It is caused because of the narrowing of the artery which supplies blood to the kidney. Either one or both the arteries can be narrowed which says a condition called renal artery stenosis. During this condition as the kidney receives low blood flow, it acts as if the reason is due to dehydration which responds by releasing hormones that stimulate the body to retain sodium and water, which gets filled onto blood vessels as an additional fluid ends up by raising the blood pressure.
Skeletal System
The risk factor of hypertension can also cause damage to the skeletal system of the body, leading to osteoporosis, a type of bone disease caused by a loss of bone mass and bone mineral density, weakening the bones and raising fracture risks.
The correlation of hypertension to osteoporosis is that as the blood pressure rises it triggers the inflammatory mediators in our body by altering the blood flow to the bone marrow and bone.
Women who have undergone menopause are at a higher risk of osteoporosis.
Impact on eyes
High blood pressure can also cause damage to tiny, delicate blood vessels that supply blood to the eyes.
Damage to the blood vessels in the retina (retinopathy).
Damage to the blood vessels in the light-sensitive tissue which is at the back of the eye can lead to complete loss of vision.
The blocked flow of blood also damages the optic nerve leading to bleeding through the eye or vision loss.
Hypotension: Low Blood pressure occurs when blood pressure during and after each heartbeat is much lower than usual level.
Types of Hypotension
Orthostatic hypotension: also called postural hypotension form of a low pressure that occurs when you stand up quickly. It is often a mild condition but its severity may let an individual lose consciousness.
Postprandial hypotension: A condition where a person's blood pressure falls after eating. In some people, this occurs as they are genetically predisposed to this whereas in others it happens after a stroke or some accident. Symptoms may lead to dizziness or fainting after a meal.
Neurally mediated hypotension is a complication that occurs due to unnatural reflex action between the brain and heart, even though they are structurally normal. It has various names such as vasodepressor, syncope, and fainting reflex. It mostly affects young adults and children. Symptoms: visual changes, slower speech, chest pain.
Multiple system atrophy with orthostatic hypotension also called Shy-drager syndrome is a disorder affecting the body's involuntary functions, including blood pressure, heart rate, and motor control. This shares many symptoms with Parkinson's disease, leading to poor balance, and slow movement. To date, there is no certainty for this disorder.
Risks of Hypotension
Pregnancy: During pregnancy blood pressure is a sign of both a healthy mother and the baby. During the first 12 weeks, a woman might notice a drop in blood pressure. There could be various symptoms occurring like dizziness, and depression which can also have a risk to the baby as frequent fainting could be dangerous. A woman may also injure herself which may lead to loss of blood circulation which can cause internal issues and this severity can result in organ damage that may keep blood from reaching the baby, which poses risks to the baby’s health.
Septicemia/ Sepsis: It is a serious bloodstream infection, whereas sepsis is a serious complication of septicemia. Septic shock is one of the complications taking place when there is a sudden drop in blood pressure. It is one of the serious medical emergencies.
Lifestyle changes that can help prevent blood pressure.
Eating healthy foods such as more fruits and vegetables.
Maintaining a healthy weight.
Not Smoking.
Reducing intake of alcohol.
Getting adequate sleep.
Increasing fluid intake.
Avoiding sudden changes in position or posture.
Less processed salty food.
Treatment of hypotension can include the use of intravenous fluids such as Norepinephrine injection only under the supervision of a doctor or vasopressors such as epinephrine, dopamine, and vasopressin.
Treatment of hypertension can include the usage of drugs to reduce blood pressure by relaxing the blood vessels. Common examples can include the use of ACE (Angiotensin- converting enzyme), beta-blockers (that reduce the workload on the heart, open blood vessels, heart to beat slower), alpha-blockers (that reduce the effect of natural chemicals that narrow blood vessels), enalapril, ramipril, vasodilators (Hydralazine), etc. as recommended by doctors.
There are 2 main types used to detect blood pressure
Manual, an aneroid equipment and automatic equipment that contains electronics that sense the pulse wave under an inflated arm cuff.
Automatic equipment minimizes human error as it is recommended using the proper cuff will help ensure an accurate reading.
Monitoring your blood pressure at home is easy to do as it's done using a blood pressure monitor.
Newly developed Doori Healthables is also one of its smart health monitors that do not let human error occur as it does not require effort or anything but just a fingertip to know where your blood pressure stands and also provides recommended health tips to bring you back to a normal condition. It detects other vitals too such as oxygen level, body temperature, heart rate, etc.
Conclusion:
As blood pressure is one of the vital things to be kept in proper condition, if not paid proper attention could lead to various health issues by showing certain symptoms as mentioned above. Monitoring and following a healthy diet and physical fitness may turn you into a healthy lifestyle.
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