Dangers and complications of high and uncontrolled blood pressure

Suffering from high blood pressure? Here is why you should not ignore it.

By: Dr Nilesh Gautam | | Published: June 2, 2014 3:05 pm

Hypertension or high blood pressure is one of the most common ailments today. Considered a manageable condition, most people tend to take adhering to their medication extremely lightly, and think nothing of missing a dose or two. But hypertension is no simple disease. Not only is it capable of causing severe and permanent damage to the body, hypertension can even kill you. In this article Dr Nilesh Gautham, cardiologist at the Asian Heart Institute tells us about the dangers and complications of uncontrolled high blood pressure. Also Read - Commonly used blood pressure medications safe for COVID-19 patients

Also Read - Rajinikanth being treated for severe hypertension: Check your blood pressure regularly

What are the dangers of uncontrolled BP? Also Read - Hypertension: Regulate blood pressure with these 5 yoga poses

Simply put, uncontrolled high blood pressure (HBP) can injure or kill you. Also known as ‘the silent killer’, high BP has no symptoms, making it very difficult to gauge how severely the condition is damaging your arteries, heart and other organs.

Here are the possible health consequences that occur over time:

damage to the heart or coronary arteries including heart attack, heart disease, congestive heart failure, aortic dissection and atherosclerosis (fatty buildups in the arteries that cause them to harden)
stroke
kidney damage
vision loss
erectile dysfunction
memory loss
fluid in the lungs
angina
peripheral Artery Disease (PAD).

Individuals whose blood pressure is higher than 140/90 mm Hg (140 systolic or 90 diastolic) often become patients treated for serious cardiovascular problems.

What complications can it lead to?

Uncontrolled high blood pressure can lead to:

Heart attacks or stroke: High blood pressure can cause hardening and thickening of the arteries (atherosclerosis), which can lead to a heart attack, stroke or other complications.

Aneurysm: Increased blood pressure can cause your blood vessels to weaken and bulge, forming an aneurysm. If an aneurysm ruptures, it can be life-threatening.

Heart failure: In order to pump blood against the higher pressure in your blood vessels, your heart muscles thicken. Eventually, the thickened muscle may have a hard time pumping enough blood to meet your body’s needs, which can lead to heart failure.

Weakened and narrowed blood vessels in your kidneys: This can prevent your kidneys from functioning normally.

Thickened, narrowed or torn blood vessels in the eyes: Which can lead to vision loss.

Metabolic syndrome: This syndrome is a cluster of disorders of your body’s metabolism, including increased waist circumference, high triglycerides, low high-density lipoprotein (HDL), or ‘good’ cholesterol, high blood pressure, and high insulin levels.If you have high blood pressure, you’re more likely to have other components of metabolic syndrome. The more components you have, the greater your risk of developing diabetes, heart disease or stroke.

Trouble with memory or understanding: Uncontrolled high blood pressure may also affect your ability to think, remember and learn. Trouble with memory or understanding concepts is more common in people with high blood pressure.

Here are 9 common indicators of your blood pressure being too high or too low

breathlessness
headache
bleeding from the nose
fatigue and sleepiness
confusion
tinnitus or ringing in the ears
vomiting
profuse sweating
blurred vision

These symptoms are by no means all-inclusive, but serve as a useful guide. Please note that not exhibiting these symptoms does not necessarily mean you do not have high blood pressure.

When should a person with uncontrolled BP visit a doctor?

High blood pressure often causes no symptoms for a long time. Even if your blood pressure is high, you may feel fine. This is why many people who have high blood pressure don’t pay attention to it until they have a heart attack, a stroke, kidney damage, or other serious health problem. That’s why you should have your blood pressure checked regularly. If you have never been diagnosed with hypertension and you have no other serious medical problems, the American Heart Association recommends that you have your blood pressure checked at least once every 2 years.

In some people their blood pressure rises quickly and becomes excessively high all of a sudden. This causes the diastolic blood pressure to rise to 130 or higher and is considered a medical emergency is called malignant, or accelerated, high blood pressure. Here are the symptoms of malignant high blood pressure include the following:

blurred vision
chest pain
dizziness
headache
palpitations
shortness of breath

Finally, high blood pressure is a serious condition and not paying attention to it, or leaving it untreated could have serious consequences. If you have high blood pressure it is imperative that you seek immediate medical attention.

You may also like to read:

For more articles on angina and heart disease, check out our heart disease section. Follow us on Facebook and Twitter for all the latest updates! For daily free health tips, sign up for our newsletter. And to join discussions on health topics of your choice, visit our forum.

Published : June 2, 2014 3:05 pm

Can immune therapy help treat advanced bladder cancer?

Scientists discover genetic cause for male reproductive birth defects

About The health Site

Useful Links