What is high blood pressure: basic concepts and why it is dangerous

Hypertension (hypertension) is the most common disease of the cardiovascular system.

Hypertension is rapidly "getting younger", it is now a disease not only of the elderly, but often occurs in pregnant women, and is becoming more common in teenagers.

What is high blood pressure? The answer to this question can be found in the definition of the state of this disease.

It is characterized by chronically elevated blood pressure, when the highest value (systolic pressure) exceeds 140 mmHg and the lowest (diastolic pressure) above 90 mmHg. subject to at least three measurements taken at different times on a person who is in a calm state.

Optimal blood pressure indicators are 120-130 by 80-89 mm Hg, if they are higher, it is necessary to start actively treating hypertension. However, few diagnose this disease early: about 35% of men and 55% of women know about arterial hypertension, only half of them are involved in the treatment of arterial hypertension and only 6% of the male population and 20% of the female population control their pressure.

The earlier high blood pressure is identified and kept under control, the lower the risk of developing complications of hypertension (ischemic disease, atherosclerosis, kidney disease, low blood testosterone levels, erectile dysfunction) in the future.

Hypertension can be one of the causes of impotence in men.

It is useful to note

The main task of treating hypertension is the constant control of blood pressure in order to avoid even more serious health problems, since this disease cannot be completely cured.

What is dangerous hypertension

With prolonged high blood pressure, blood vessel walls thicken and lose the ability to relax, which prevents normal blood supply and, as a result, saturates tissues and organs with oxygen and other nutrients and decreases their activity. functional. Let's consider in more detail what dangerous hypertension is:

• Hypertension crisis- the most common exacerbation of arterial hypertension, can occur either in a relatively satisfactory condition of the patient, or be caused by the patient's psychophysical stress. Developing at high speed, a hypertensive crisis dramatically raises blood pressure, causes severe headaches, dizziness, tachycardia or arrhythmia, nausea and vomiting. At risk are those who suffer from climate dependence, are in the pre-climatic period.
• myocardial infarction- complicated by hypertension can occur in a few minutes and lead to death. The main symptom is a prolonged pain attack.
• Leakage- circulatory disorders in the vessels of the brain, cerebral hemorrhage, characterized by a sudden and intense headache, which is quickly accompanied by other symptoms of the brain: impaired speech, twisted mouth, paralysis of a part of the body. If urgent measures are taken and capillary bleeding is done in case of hypertension, this process can be reversible.
• angina pectoris- the disease is less transient. Violation of the heart causes severe emotional overload, overwork. Accompanied by severe chest pain, malaise, can cause frequent vomiting.
• Cardiac insufficiency- a chronic condition of the heart muscle, in which it is not able to deliver oxygen to the organs and tissues of the body. It is characterized by the patient's total weakness, in which he is not able to withstand elementary physical activity: independent lifting, walking, etc.
• coronary artery disease- Insufficient blood supply to the coronary arteries, resulting in insufficient nutrition of the heart. With careful adherence to the prescribed treatment of hypertension, it is not difficult to prevent the development of coronary heart disease.
• kidney failure- impaired kidney function, destruction of neurons, partial inability to remove toxins from the body. Arterial hypertension is the second cause of acute or chronic renal failure after diabetes mellitus.
• vision distortion- occurs as a result of impaired blood supply to the retina and optic nerve. A sharp rise in blood pressure can cause spasm of the artery that feeds the optic nerve, damaging the integrity of the retinal vessels. Hypertension is dangerous with pathologies such as retinal or vitreous hemorrhage: the first leads to the formation of a black spot in the field of vision, the second leads to loss of vision in the affected eye.

To avoid complications that are such dangerous hypertension, it is necessary to consult a doctor in a timely manner and carry out an examination, which will help to determine the stage of development of the disease and prescribe the necessary treatment.

Degrees of hypertension: classification, forms

Due to the nature of the assessment of one or more criteria, several classifications of hypertension are used.

Allocate developmental stages such as origin, form of leakage, level of blood pressure, degree of damage to target organs.

The main task in diagnosing arterial hypertension is to differentiate the nature of the disease. There are two major groups here:

• primary or essential hypertension - increased blood pressure is the root cause;
• secondary or symptomatic high blood pressure - high blood pressure is caused by diseases of other organs or systems: kidneys, heart, endocrine glands, lungs, thyroid gland.

According to experts

Treatment of symptomatic hypertension cannot occur without treating the disease that caused it and starting with it. In some cases, along with the elimination of the underlying disease, hypertension also disappears.

In addition, blood pressure, up to a hypertensive crisis, can increase due to inadequate intake of certain medications, with neuroses, excessive use of caffeine and other stimulants.

When diagnosing essential hypertension, doctors often classify the condition according to blood pressure level to choose the right tactics to treat essential hypertension. In international practice, there are three grades of hypertension:

• 1st degree hypertension- systolic pressure 140-159 mm Hg, diastolic pressure 90-99 mm Hg. A mild form of the disease, in which an abrupt change in blood pressure is characteristic, may return to normal on its own and rise again.
• 2 degree hypertension- systolic 160-179 mm Hg, diastolic 100-109 mm Hg. Moderate form, the increase in pressure is more prolonged, rarely drops to normal values.
• 3 degree hypertension- systolic above 180 mmHg, diastolic above 110 mmHg. In the severe form, the pressure is stable at the level of pathological indicators, evolves with serious complications and is difficult to correct with medication.

Separately, isolated systolic hypertension is isolated, it occurs in about a third of the elderly with arterial hypertension. This form is due to age-related loss of elasticity of the great vessels, often accompanied by myocardial infarction, coronary heart disease, congestive heart failure, and left ventricular hypertrophy. Blood pressure indicators: systolic up to 160 mm Hg. and above, diastolic - below 90 mm Hg.

Useful information

It is worth noting another smaller group - the so-called "white coat hypertension", when, under the influence of psycho-emotional factors, a person's blood pressure increases only at the time of its measurement by a doctor. In such cases, the diagnosis is clarified by repeated measurement of pressure in a calm home environment.

In addition to the degree of hypertension, when making the diagnosis, risk factors that can lead to complications of the cardiovascular system and the stage of the clinical course of the disease are also evaluated:

• Transistor hypertension (early stage). The increase in pressure is periodic, returning to normal values; drugs that lower blood pressure are not used.
• labile hypertension. An increase in blood pressure is directly related to a provoking factor: stress, severe psychological or physical stress. To stabilize the pressure, medication is needed.
• stable arterial hypertension. Persistent increase in pressure, in which serious supportive therapy is used.
• evil form. By increasing the pressure to very high levels, the disease progresses rapidly and leads to the development of serious complications.
• crisis form. Periodic hypertensive crises in the context of normal or slightly elevated blood pressure are characteristic.

An assessment of the severity of hypertension and the risk of possible complications is only possible on the basis of a complete examination: general and biochemical tests, ultrasound of the heart and other organs, ECG, eye fundus examination. A thorough examination of a patient with high blood pressure is usually performed during hospital treatment.

High blood pressure is the main warning symptom of hypertension in both men and women.

Symptoms of hypertension can be absent for a long time, and if a person does not constantly use a tonometer, then he can discover his disease, having already begun to treat its complications.

Hypertension often has no manifestation, except for its main symptom - persistent high blood pressure.

Also, the concept of "persistent" or "chronic" is key here, because in various situations (stress, fear, or anger), pressure can build up and then return to normal on its own.

However, few control the level of their pressure, so you should pay attention to the following symptoms, which indicate the development of high blood pressure:

• Headache. Most often it manifests itself in the occipital, parietal region or in the temples. It can occur both at night and immediately after waking up. As a rule, it increases with mental or physical exertion. Sometimes accompanied by swelling of the eyelids and face.
• Dizziness. Sometimes, even with little physical effort: coughing, turning or tilting the head, a steep climb.
• Pain in the region of the heart. They occur not only with emotional stress, but also at rest. Both long-term pains, tightness pains and short-term pains and stabbings are possible. Do not disappear after taking nitroglycerin.
• Strong heartbeat.
• Noise in the ears.
• Visual impairment: veil, fog, "flies" before the eyes.
• Arterial disease: cold extremities, intermittent claudication.
• Swelling of the legs. Indicate a violation of the excretory function of the kidneys or heart failure.
• dyspnea. It occurs both during physical exertion and at rest.

It's important to know

Hypertensive crisis - an emergency caused by excessively high blood pressure levels, it can also be classified as 2nd and 3rd degree hypertension symptoms. At the same time, patients with 1st degree arterial hypertension, strictly following the doctor's recommendations and following a diet for hypertensive patients, can achieve complete disappearance of the unpleasant symptoms of the disease.

It cannot be said that the symptoms of hypertension in men and women are significantly different, but in fact, men are more susceptible to this disease, especially in the age group of 40 to 55 years. This is partly due to the difference in physiological structure: men, unlike women, have a higher body weight, respectively, and the volume of blood circulating in their vessels is significantly greater, which creates favorable conditions for hypertension.

On the other hand, women are more responsible for their health, proper lifestyle. The number of stressful situations at work, consumption of alcohol and smoked cigarettes is higher in men, but this no longer refers to the symptoms of hypertension, but to the causes of its development.

Treatment of hypertension with medicines and folk remedies

The treatment of hypertension, as well as other diseases that are difficult to diagnose and that require constant therapy (diabetes mellitus, allergies, prostatitis and impotence), should only be compiled and prescribed by a specialist. If dietary restrictions, salt intake, avoiding alcohol and smoking, avoiding stress and other correctable causes of hypertension do not help normalize blood pressure levels, high blood pressure pills will be prescribed.

When treating hypertension with folk remedies, side effects are usually absent. You don't have to run to the pharmacy to buy expensive medications and stand in line for the doctor to write another prescription. All you have to do is take time for yourself, change your diet, and learn to manage stress.

Causes of high blood pressure and the development of hypertension

The causes of arterial hypertension are still not fully understood; both the body's internal systems and external factors play an important role in the development of the disease.

The main causes of hypertension are impaired blood circulation through the vessels, limited flow to the left ventricle of the heart. In modern medicine, there is a completely logical explanation for this - structural changes in blood vessels with age, the formation of blood clots and atherosclerotic plaques in their cavities.

If in symptomatic hypertension the causes of high blood pressure are caused by other diseases, in essential hypertension, that is, this form is recorded in 85% of cases, the exact causes of high blood pressure cannot be established, it occurs independently.

There are many risk factors that contribute to a persistent increase in blood pressure, they are generally considered to be the causes of hypertension. These include:

• Age, for men over 55, for women over 65. With age, the walls of blood vessels lose their elasticity, which increases their resistance to blood flow, as a result, pressure increases.
• hereditary predisposition.
• Walk. As already mentioned, men are more likely to suffer from hypertension.
• Violation of fat metabolism, obesity (men with a waist circumference of more than 102 cm, women - more than 88 cm).
• Diabetes.
• Smoke. It causes an immediate rise in blood pressure, and smokers with many years of experience are prone to vascular disease.
• Alcohol abuse. The blood pressure of a person who has stopped drinking is reduced by at least fifteen points.
• Excessive consumption of salt. Excessive intake of sodium, the main component of table salt, is one of the most significant causes of high blood pressure in hypertensive patients: sodium chloride prevents the removal of fluid from the body, which increases the patient's already high vascular tone. Remember, the average person consumes three times the amount of salt they need, learn not to add salt to your food.
• Lack of physical activity, sedentary lifestyle.
• Exposure to stress.
• Disorder of cholesterol metabolism.
• Insufficient dietary potassium intake.
• Increased level of adrenaline in the blood.
• Congenital heart defects.

Various kidney diseases, late toxicosis of pregnant women, regular intake of certain drugs, in some cases this also applies to oral contraceptives, must be attributed to the causes of secondary hypertension.

The above risk factors can be divided into two large groups:

• Which can be eliminated on their own or with the help of doctors: treating obesity, reducing blood cholesterol levels, the number of cigarettes smoked, alcohol or salt consumed, losing weight, and so on.
• Avoid what there is no possibility: age and hereditary predisposition.

Therefore, those who are in the so-called second risk group need to carefully monitor their health, control and prevent hypertension. And for everyone who has at least one of the above factors, constantly monitor their blood pressure level and, of course, lead a normal, active lifestyle.