What is Hypertension?
Hi-per-TEN-shun (HTN)
Hyper: excessive, above normal; -tension: to stretch
Hypertension is the term used to describe high blood pressure. Blood pressure is a measurement of the force against the walls of your arteries as your heart pumps blood through your body.
Introduction
There are two types of hypertension, primary and secondary hypertension. The majority of high blood pressure diagnoses fall into the category of “primary hypertension” also called “essential hypertension.” This means that there is not a single reason to explain your hypertension. Another medical term used to describe an illness without underlying cause is “idiopathic,” A small number of high blood pressure diagnoses will fall into the category of “secondary hypertension.” It’s differs from primary hypertension because in secondary hypertension, a clearly detectable cause of the high blood pressure is determined. That can include Kidney Problems, Pregnancy, side effects with certain medications and some cancers. Blood pressure contains two phases; systole and diastole. The systole is the contraction phase when blood is forced out of the heart. The diastole is the relaxation phase and when the ventricles are filling up with blood. Both Phases are very important and if one is missing it can lead to life threatening situations. Both of these two measurements are recorded together i.e. 120/80 mmHg (normal blood pressure). The first number is the systolic and the second number is the diastolic.
Signs and Symptoms
Signs and symptoms include but are not limited to: severe headache, nausea or vomiting, confusion, changes in vision and nose bleeds, chest pain, sob (shortness of breath), blood in urine, pounding in the chest, neck and or ears. Many people don’t really pay attention to these symptoms because they could mean a lot of other things. It is very important to contact your healthcare provider if your experience any of these symptoms when you are hypertensive....