High blood pressure - Simple English Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

# High blood pressure

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High blood pressure, or hypertension, is a disease where your blood pressure is always above average.

There is no fixed point when blood pressure is considered "high". Generally, if a person's blood pressure stays at 140/90 torr (a unit of pressure) or above in both arms, that person has high blood pressure.

A recent report has defined blood pressure 120/80 torr to 139/89 torr as "prehypertension." Prehypertension is not a disease, but means that a person has a high risk of developing hypertension.

In patients with diabetes mellitus or kidney disease, studies have shown that blood pressure over 130/80 torr should be considered a risk factor and may need treatment.

A number of factors increase the risk of developing hypertension, including high salt use, being overweight, occupation, drinking alcohol, family size, excessive noise and crowding. High salt use has received the greatest attention. Aproximately 60% of the hypertension patients are affected by salt use.

Hypertension is one of the most common complex inherited disorders, about 30% of cases. More than 50 genes have been examined in studies of hypertension, and the number is constantly growing. Renal Hypertension is caused by renal disease. What it does is decreases perfusion of renal tissue due to stenosis of a main or branch renal artery activates the renin-angiotensin system.

While high elevated blood pressure alone is not an illness, it often requires treatment due to its short- and long-term effects on many organs. The risk is increased for strokes, heart attack, heart failure, damage to the eye, and renal failure.

Although few women of childbearing age have high blood pressure, up to 10% develop hypertension of pregnancy.

## [edit] Diagnosis

Diagnosis of hypertension is generally on the basis of a persistently high blood pressure. Usually this requires three separate measurements at least one week apart. Obtaining reliable blood pressure measurements depends on following several rules and understanding the many factors that influence blood pressure readings. For instance, measurements in control of hypertension should be at least 1 hour after caffeine, 30 minutes after smoking and without any stress. Cuff size is also important. The cuff should encircle and cover two-thirds of the length of the upper arm. You should be sitting for a minimum of five minutes.

## [edit] Treatment

Doctors recommend weight loss and regular exercise as the first steps in treating mild to moderate hypertension. These steps are highly effective in reducing blood pressure, but easier to suggest than to achieve, and most patients with moderate or severe hypertension end up requiring indefinite drug therapy to bring their blood pressure down to a safe level. Stopping smoking, does not directly reduce blood pressure, but it is very important for people with hypertension because it reduces the risk of many dangerous outcomes of hypertension, such as stroke and/or heart attack. Mild hypertension can usually be treated by diet, exercise, and improved physical fitness. A diet rich in fruits, vegetables, fat-free dairy foods, and foods low in fat and salt lowers blood pressure in people with hypertension. Regular mild exercise improves blood flow, and helps to lower blood pressure. Reduction of environmental stressors such as high sound levels and over-illumination can be an additional method of ameliorating hypertension.

There are many medications for treating hypertension, called antihypertensives, which lower blood pressure. Reducing blood pressure by 5-6 torr can decrease the risk of stroke by 40%, reduce coronary heart disease by 15-20%, and reduce the likelihood of heart failure. Commonly used drugs include beta blockers such as metoprolol, atenolol, labetalol, carvedilol, ACE inhibitors such as lisinopril, quinapril, fosinopril, captopril, enalapril, ramipril; angiotensin receptor blockers (ARBs) such as losartan, valsartan, irbesartan; calcium channel blockers such as amlodipine, verapamil; diuretics, such as chlortalidone, hydrochlorothiazide (HCTZ), combination products (usually contains HCTZ and another drug), and alpha blockers such as terazosin and prazosin.

The aim of treatment should be blood pressure control (<140/90 torr for most patients, and lower in certain contexts such as diabetes or kidney disease. Each added drug may reduce the systolic blood pressure by 5-10 torr, so often multiple drugs are necessary to achieve blood pressure control.

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