Hypertensive Disorders Causes Essay
Chronic hypertension is high blood pressure that either precedes pregnancy, is diagnosed within the first 20 weeks of pregnancy, or does not resolve by the 12-week postpartum checkup. Two categories of severity are recognized: mild (up to 179 mm Hg systolic and 109 mm Hg) and severe (≥ 180 systolic or 110 diastolic). Chronic hypertension complicates about 5% of all pregnancies, and prevalence rates are increasing due to delayed childbearing. Medications should be reviewed when pregnancy is first diagnosed. We cannot recommend with certainty to either stop, start, or continue anti hypertensive medications: evidence is mixed whether such actions improve outcome. Methyl dopa is the most studied of all anti hypertensive medications and is generally the first choice in pregnancy because it has a limited effect on utero placental blood flow. Sometimes an alternative must be found because of elevated liver enzymes or complaints of headache. Labetalol, a combined alpha blocker and beta-blocker, is the first alternative to methyl dopa and is becoming a first-line choice as experience with the drug during pregnancy increases. It is generally well tolerated and has an easier (twice-a-day) dosing schedule than methyl dopa. Calcium channel blockers, particularly nifedipine, are being used more frequently, probably because doctors have become familiar with their use to stop premature labor. They seem to be safe and effective, but evidence is sparse. Diuretics have been used in pregnancy despite the theoretical risk of preventing normal blood volume expansion.Hypertensive Disorders Causes Essay
Most studies have not found adverse pregnancy outcomes. Nonetheless, caution should be used in cases of impaired utero placental perfusion, such as Precambrian or intrauterine growth restriction. Atenolol and other pure beta-blockers should be avoided: they have been associated with babies born small for their gestational age. Angioplasty-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitors are contraindicated in the second and third trimester because they are associated with a myriad of congenital anomalies, including renal failure, oligonucleotides, renal dysgenesis, reduced ossification, pulmonary hypoplasia, and fetal and neonatal death. Patients presenting in the first trimester on an ACE inhibitor should either be taken off anti hypertensive medications or switched to another agent. Exposure during this time is not an indication for pregnancy termination, however. Angioplasty II receptor antagonists are considered guilty by association because of their similarity to ACE inhibitors, but there are no data to confirm this. Chronic hypertension accounts for a disproportionate amount of maternal and perinatal morbidity and mortality, mostly because of an increased risk of superimposed preeclampsia. There is an increased risk of prematurity, birth of infants who are small for their gestational age, intrauterine death, placental abruption, and cesarean delivery.Hypertensive Disorders Causes Essay
Complication rates are directly related to the severity and duration of elevated blood pressures. For instance, patients with severe hypertension in the first trimester have a greater than 50% risk of developing superimposed preeclampsia. All hypertensive patients should undergo increased surveillance, serial laboratory tests throughout pregnancy, serial ultrasound scans to follow growth, and antenatal testing. The baby should be delivered vaginally if possible.
Blood pressure is the force of your blood as it flows through the arteries in your body. Arteries are blood vessels that carry blood from your heart to the rest of your body. When your heart beats, it pushes blood through your arteries. As the blood flows, it puts pressure on your artery walls. This is called blood pressure.
High blood pressure (also called hypertension) happens when your blood moves through your arteries at a higher pressure than normal. Many different things can cause high blood pressure. If your blood pressure gets too high or stays high for a long time, it can cause health problems. Uncontrolled high blood pressure puts you at a higher risk for stroke, heart disease, heart attack, and kidney failure.Hypertensive Disorders Causes Essay
There are 2 types of high blood pressure.
Primary hypertension. This also is called essential hypertension. It is called this when there is no known cause for your high blood pressure. This is the most common type of hypertension. This type of blood pressure usually takes many years to develop. It probably is a result of your lifestyle, environment, and how your body changes as you age.
Secondary hypertension. This is when a health problem or medicine is causing your high blood pressure. Things that can cause secondary hypertension include:
- kidney problems
- sleep apnea
- thyroid or adrenal gland problems
- some medicines.
Using an Ambulatory Blood Pressure Monitor
Symptoms of high blood pressure
Most people who have high blood pressure do not have symptoms. This is why it’s sometimes called “the silent killer.” It is very important to have your blood pressure checked regularly.
Some people experience headaches, nosebleeds, or shortness of breath with high blood pressure. However, those symptoms can mimic many other things (serious or non-serious). Usually, these symptoms occur once blood pressure has reached a dangerously high level over a period of time.Hypertensive Disorders Causes Essay
What causes high blood pressure?
Food, medicine, lifestyle, age, and genetics can cause high blood pressure. Your doctor can help you find out what might be causing yours. Common factors that can lead to high blood pressure include:
- A diet high in salt, fat, and/or cholesterol.
- Chronic conditions such as kidney and hormone problems, diabetes, and high cholesterol.
- Family history, especially if your parents or other close relatives have high blood pressure.
- Lack of physical activity.
- Older age (the older you are, the more likely you are to have high blood pressure).
- Overweight and obesity.
- Race (non-Hispanic black people are more likely to have high blood pressure than people of other races).
- Some birth control medicines.
- Stress.
- Tobacco use or drinking too much alcohol.
How is high blood pressure diagnosed?
High blood pressure is diagnosed with a blood pressure monitor. This is a common test for all doctor visits. A nurse will place a band (cuff) around your arm. The band is attached to a small pump and a meter. He or she will squeeze the pump. It will feel tight around your arm. Then he or she will stop and watch the meter. This provides the nurse with 2 numbers that make up your blood pressure. The top number is your systolic reading (the peak blood pressure when your heart is squeezing blood out). The bottom number is your diastolic reading (the pressure when your heart is filling with blood). You may also hear the doctor or nurse say a blood pressure is “120 over 80.”
- Normal blood pressure is less than 120 on top and less than 80 on the bottom.
- Hypertension levels are 120-139 on top and 80-89 on the bottom.
- High blood pressure, stage 1 is 140-159 on top and 90-99 on the bottom.
- High blood pressure, stage 2 is 160 or higher on top and 100 and over on the bottom.Hypertensive Disorders Causes Essay
The higher your blood pressure is, the more often you need to have it checked. After age 18, have your blood pressure checked at least once every two years. Do it more often if you have had high blood pressure in the past.
High Blood Pressure (HBP) or hypertension is a persistent abnormal elevation of the pressure within the arteries which deliver blood to the entire body. An adult’s blood pressure is calculated by using two numbers. The heart’s rhythmic pumping action creates the upper systolic pressure (normal is 120 mm. Hg. or lower) and its resting pressure between heart beats is the lower diastolic pressure (normal is 80 mm. Hg. or lower). There are four stages of high blood pressure or hypertension:
- STAGE 1 or Hypertension is 120/80 to 139/89
- STAGE 2 or Mild Hypertension is 140/90 to 159/99
- STAGE 3 or Moderate Hypertension is 160/100 to 179/109
- STAGE 4 or Severe Hypertension is 180/110 or higher
If your blood pressure is in the hypertension range, it is likely that you will end up with high blood pressure unless you take action to prevent it. High blood pressure needs to be treated because it can lead to kidney failure, heart attacks, heart failure, stroke, and blindness.Hypertensive Disorders Causes Essay
Causes
In most cases, it’s impossible to pinpoint an exact cause of high blood pressure. There are, however, a number of factors that have been linked to high blood pressure including:
- A family history of high blood pressure.
- Age – The incidence of high blood pressure rises in men after age 35 and in women after age 45.
- Gender – Men are more likely to have high blood pressure than women.
- Smoking – If you smoke cigarettes, you may have increased high blood pressure.
- Race – Approximately 33% of African-Americans have high blood pressure, compared to 25% of Caucasians.
Unfortunately, the cause of high blood pressure (hypertension) in 90-95% of the cases is unknown. The medical term for this kind of high blood pressure is primary or essential hypertension.Hypertensive Disorders Causes Essay
Secondary hypertension has an identifiable cause. One of the most important causes of secondary hypertension is the narrowing (stenosis) of arteries to the kidneys (renal arteries). Renal artery stenosis causes about 5% of all cases of hypertension and can reduce kidney size. Learn more about Kidney Failure and Vascular Disease.
Warning Signs
High Blood Pressure (HBP) or hypertension is often referred to as the “silent killer” because there are no symptoms. Many people do not find out that they have high blood pressure until they have problems with their heart, kidney, or brain.
Treatment & Prevention
High blood pressure affects more than 50 million Americans 60 years of age and older. One in three adults has high blood pressure. Approximately half of all these patients use medications to lower their blood pressure, but only half of these have their blood pressure under control. You can lower your risk of high blood pressure with a healthy lifestyle, including:
- Maintaining a healthy weight
- Increasing physical activity
- Eliminating tobacco use
- Limiting alcohol consumption to no more than three ounces per day for men and one and a half ounces for women
- Building relaxation into your workday
- Developing healthy eating habits, which include selecting a variety of foods, partially whole grains, fruits and green vegetables, and limiting the intake of salt and saturated fats Hypertensive Disorders Causes Essay
You can also work with your doctor to achieve good blood pressure control by:
- Knowing your blood pressure. If either the upper level (systolic pressure) or lower level (diastolic pressure) goes persistently beyond the normal limit of 140/90, consult with your physician.
- Monitor your blood pressure regularly, and keep a written record to share with your doctor.
- Take medications as instructed.
- If blood pressure readings remain high, ask your doctor if tests to detect secondary hypertension should be conducted. Depending on the findings, treatment may be modified to achieve blood pressure control.
The most common medical condition and leading cause of death in Ireland today is Hypertension, accounting for nearly 1/3 of the total number of deaths and killing around 10,000 people each year. Hypertension or high blood pressure is where the force of the blood against the arterial walls as it circles the body is more forceful than it should be. It is the main cause of death in Ireland due to the fact that it is a condition that usually gives no symptoms, and goes unnoticed unless it is checked regularly or when a health problem arises. It is the lack of symptoms that gives the condition its other name The Silent Killer. To check total blood pressure a measurement of both systolic and diastolic pressure must be taken. Systolic pressure measures the blood pressure while the heart beats and diastolic pressure measures the blood pressure while the heart rests. Normal blood pressure is considered to be 120/80 mm Hg, 120 being the measurement of systolic output and 80 being measurement of the diastolic output. Today, there are 4 categories of blood pressure; normal, per-hypertension, hypertension stage I and hypertension stage-ii. Normal blood pressure as stated previously is 120/80, per-hypertension is considered to be between 121-139 systolic and 80-89 diastolic while both stages of hypertension are 140 systolic or higher with 90 diastolic or higher.blood-pressure.gif Hypertensive Disorders Causes Essay