What is Hypertension?

Hypertension, or high blood pressure, is a disease that occurs when the blood flows through the arteries at a higher pressure than normal.

High blood pressure can lead to complications, and it is crucial to get treatment immediately. Proper treatment can help prevent these complications and reduce your stroke and heart disease risk.

Many factors may contribute to hypertension, including;

• Aging
• Being overweight or obese
• Smoking cigarettes
• Drinking too much alcohol
• Stress
• Pregnancy

High blood pressure is the “silent killer” because it has no symptoms but can lead to cardiovascular diseases, stroke, kidney failure, and other serious health problems.

What are the Causes of Hypertension?

When your blood pressure is high, your body works harder to pump blood through your arteries, putting an extra burden on the heart. This can damage your heart muscle or a clot in one of the main arteries leading from the heart—two common causes of stroke. High blood pressure also weakens the walls of your arteries over time, making them more likely to burst or tear open when you exert yourself physically or emotionally.

What are the Symptoms of Hypertension?

The main symptom of high blood pressure is headaches. If you experience frequent headaches, especially if they are intense, you may have high blood pressure.

Headaches can also be a symptom of other conditions, so it’s important to get immediate care to get the right diagnosis. You can experience nosebleeds, irregular heart rhythms, buzzing in the ears, or vision changes. These symptoms, however, are not specific and only occur when the pressure has reached life-threatening levels. Visit a walk-in ER near you if you experience confusion, chest pain, muscle tremors, vomiting, and fatigue.

How Is Hypertension Treated?

If you’re diagnosed with hypertension, your doctor will likely recommend a combination of lifestyle changes and medications. Lifestyle changes can help decrease your blood pressure and prevent complications.

The American Heart Association recommends that if you have high blood pressure, you should:

• Lose weight
• Healthy diet
• Regular exercise (at least 150 minutes per week).

Your doctor may prescribe blood pressure regulating medications to control it and slow the damage it causes to your body. Understanding how these drugs work will help you make the best decisions about treating your condition.

When is Hypertension an Emergency?

If you have been on treatment and get very sick suddenly, go to the best emergency room or call 911. Your blood pressure can rise so high that it causes a stroke or heart attack.

You may also need to go to an emergency room if you:

• Have severe symptoms that do not improve after taking medication for several days (or weeks). These include nausea, vomiting, and stomach pain.
• Cannot take any medicine because of side effects such as dizziness or swelling in your hands and feet.
• Have kidney failure caused by untreated hypertension.
• Chest pain or shortness of breath
• Fast heart rate (tachycardia) and/or irregular rhythm (arrhythmia)
• Very high blood pressure

Sometimes, a medication that works well for hypertension can stop working or cause complications. Your blood pressure can rise rapidly, causing chest pain and shortness of breath – or even a heart attack or stroke.

It’s important to take all the medications your doctor prescribes as directed. Even if they don’t seem to be doing much good at first, they may still help lower your blood pressure over time.

If the medication doesn’t lower the pressure or if you suspect side effects— talk with your doctor right away!

You may also need emergency care if you have very high blood pressure that has never been diagnosed before. Our specialists help stabilize your condition as quickly as possible, so there are fewer long-term effects on your health.

How Can You Prevent High-blood Pressure?

There are several ways to prevent high blood pressure, and these include:

• Eating a healthy diet, drinking less alcohol, and exercising regularly.
• Maintaining a healthy weight.
• Avoiding smoking.
• Avoiding stress.

Take Action!

Visit Express Emergency Room Waco for assistance if your blood pressure levels rise above the normal levels.