Hypertension

The concept of “hypertension” generally includes high blood pressure, headaches and dizziness.

If you or your relatives have a recurring headache and dizziness for no apparent reason – there is a strong possibility that they have hypertension.

Our heart beats approximately 110,000 times a day. It provides the blood flow through vessels in the most remote cell of the human body. Blood pressure depends on the state of heart and blood vessels. The more often heart beats, the narrower the vessels, the higher the pressure. The vessels become narrower due to the fact that their walls are blocked by atherosclerotic plaque or spasm.

Hypertensive crisis is an attack which may be accompanied by:

• Rise of blood pressure
• Change of frequency and strength of heart contractions
• Profuse sweat and headache

The nature of hypertension may be very diverse. The most frequent hypertensive episodes, that last from days to weeks, and disappear after taking the drugs, lower blood pressure. Duration of attack is also an important factor in assessing its severity.

But we must remember that the high blood pressure is always a signal for serious failures in the heart and blood vessels. Hypertension should never be left without any attention. If this disease if left untreated, or no treated properly, it is always progressing, thus leading eventually to permanent disability or even premature death from stroke or myocardial infarction.

Complications of hypertension are a major cause of death or disability among the population worldwide.

The term “hypertension” is used to refer to a stable high blood pressure. High blood pressure occurs when there is narrowing of the arteries and / or smaller offshoots – the arterioles. The arteries are the main traffic channels that carry blood delivered to all tissues of the body. Some people often have narrowed arterioles. Initially a spasm occurs, and later they narrow the lumen which remains constant due to the thickening of the wall. And then, the flow of blood is developing to overcome these restrictions, heart work is increasing and more blood is released into the bloodstream.

Very rarely, amongst approximately one in ten patients, the cause of high blood pressure is to defeat any body. In these cases we speak of a secondary or symptomatic hypertension. However, in most cases, approximately 90% of patients, has primary or essential hypertension. Despite the fact that the reason for high blood pressure amongst these patients has not been established definitively, there is no doubt about the fact that untreated hypertension is a threat to their health. The most frequent complications of hypertension are the destruction of vital organs: brain, heart and kidneys. The higher the blood pressure, the harder the burden on the heart to maintain normal blood circulation. Therefore, if hypertension is left untreated, the wall thickening of the heart, or hypertrophy, occurs, and later the heart wall is thinning, which leads to disruption of blood supply to the tissues and heart, and this is accompanied by shortness of breath, fatigue, and swelling in the legs. These symptoms often indicate the development of heart failure, that is, the inability of the heart muscle to perform its normal function as a pump. High blood pressure speeds up the process, known as “atherosclerosis” and means the deposition of fat components in the walls of arteries and arterioles, which leads to compaction, thickening and a decrease in the vascular lumen. If the coronary arteries that supply blood to the heart are affected, then angina pectoris, or angina develops. When the progression of one of the arteries is completely blocked, the part of the heart muscle stops receiving blood, and is developing a myocardial infarction. Atherosclerosis can affect any part of the arterial system.

Our body consists of billions cells. Each cell is in constant need of oxygen and nutrients. This becomes possible due to the circulation of blood in vessels. To ensure the continuing circulation of the blood, the heart is reducing on a regular basis, and the blood in vessels is under pressure.

Hypertension – is high blood pressure in arteries.

The normal pressure indicators can fluctuate depending on the condition of a person: it rise during the physical or psycho-emotional stress, and drop during sleep. However, the pressure returns to normal of 100/60 140/90. If these numbers are higher – hypertension takes place.

There are two types of hypertension: primary hypertension (which accounts for about 75% of the disease) and the secondary, which occurs during the diseases of the kidneys, endocrine organs and some other diseases.

During hypertension, changes in various organs of the body are taking place. This disease is the cause of life-threatening acute cardiac disease (myocardial infarction) and brain stroke. Almost half of all deaths from cardiovascular diseases are accounted for hypertension.

There are three stages of hypertension:

1. stage functional changes. During this period, patients may be concerned with weakness, headache, fatigue, sleep disturbances etc. High blood pressure is not constant. It returns to normal under the influence of rest and sedatives.
2. the initial stage of organic changes. The lowering of blood pressure requires the use of special drugs. There may be hypertensive crises. The occurrence of atherosclerosis is exacerbated, and it begins with coronary heart disease, then kidney disease appears, as well as those of eyes and of other organs.
3. the stage marked by the organic changes. Blood pressure is persistently elevated. There may be complications such as myocardial infarction, stroke, heart failure, blindness etc.