What is arterial hypertension?

Arterial hypertension is a pathological condition in which pressure rises in the arteries. The disease is quite common. Statistics say that 50% of men under 40 and women over 40 have a chronic increase in blood pressure.

It is impossible to completely cure this pathology, but it is quite possible to control blood pressure. It is advisable to start doing this as early as possible. If you start treatment in the early stages, then you can avoid serious complications, which often lead to hypertension.

Why do pressure problems occur?

It used to be thought that age was the main factor that predisposes to pressure problems. But today, hypertension is increasingly common in young people.

In most cases, doctors cannot determine the exact cause of the pathology.

The prevalence of hypertension is quite high, so it was possible to identify factors contributing to its development:

• Age. Over the years, the condition of large arteries worsens, which leads to the fact that blood pressure rises.
• genetic predisposition.
• Floor. Most often, hypertension affects men.
• Bad habits.
• Sedentary lifestyle.

• Improper nutrition and obesity.
• Constant stress, depression and overwork.
• Elevated levels of the hormone adrenaline in the blood.
• Diseases of the cardiovascular system.
• Kidney dysfunction. This is due to the fact that the kidneys do not remove sodium and water from the body in time, which increases blood volume and increases blood pressure.
• Regular use of certain medications. According to studies, blood pressure is more likely to increase in women who constantly take oral contraceptives.
• Some complications of pregnancy. For example, toxicosis in the third trimester. If the increase in pressure is caused by pregnancy, then gestational hypertension is diagnosed. This disease has a low prevalence. Gestational hypertension occurs in 7% of pregnant women, but the chances of developing it increase if the woman is over 30 years old or a woman in the immediate family had this problem. Gestational hypertension is very dangerous, as it increases the risk of complications such as premature birth, placental abruption, and slow intrauterine development.

How the disease manifests itself

Therefore, the only thing that can indicate a problem is high blood pressure. In this case, a person may not be bothered by anything, but in some cases, headaches and dizziness may periodically occur, and tinnitus may occur.

Statistics show that most patients are often unaware that they have arterial hypertension. Many at the same time note a constant feeling of weakness, but explain this with fatigue at work. Therefore, it is very important not to ignore headaches and weakness, but to immediately measure blood pressure.

The first unpleasant symptoms are noticed after the hypertension has affected the organs. Thus, the first stage of the disease leads to impaired cerebral circulation. This phenomenon is accompanied by pain in the head and tinnitus.

Then the following symptoms begin to develop:

1. Memory deteriorates and performance is impaired.
2. Numb limbs.
3. Double vision.
4. There are difficulties with speech.

Such violations are observed in the later stages of the development of the disease. Initially, arterial hypertension has a transient character. In the last stages, cerebral hemorrhage or cerebral infarction may occur.

For the heart, hypertension has the following consequences:

1. The left ventricle is enlarged.
2. The heart chambers expand.

These pathological changes lead to the development of heart failure, dysfunction of the ventricles, which can cause sudden death.

After a malfunction of the ventricles, it becomes difficult for a person to breathe, cardiac asthma occurs, and there is also a threat of pulmonary edema as a consequence of high blood pressure.

These symptoms often cause a myocardial infarction, and the aorta can also rupture or dissect.

In rare cases, hypertension can lead to kidney failure.

This disease can also be manifested by visual impairment and even blindness. Therefore, in no case should it be left unattended, since the consequence may be death.

One of the main symptoms of the disease, regardless of the age of the patient, is a headache. It can occur at any time of the day, but most often in the morning, after waking up.

First, there are unpleasant sensations in the back of the head and gradually spread throughout the head. The disease is characterized by headache, which intensifies during coughing, as well as if you tilt your head. May swell face and eyelids. You can relieve pain with massage.

In some cases, due to increased pressure, the head begins to hurt so much that the person begins to feel sick. People compare their sensations with squeezing or tightness of the skull. This symptom may occur when the patient exerts himself physically or emotionally. Constantly feeling pain, a person begins to get annoyed at the slightest reason, it is difficult to tolerate noise and bright light.

Arterial hypertension can also cause pain in the region of the heart. It can occur with increased pressure even in the absence of physical exertion, when the patient is in a calm state. Usually this symptom is a response to emotional overstrain. These pains cannot be relieved by nitroglycerin and may last for a long time.

Some patients suspect arterial hypertension when small physical activity causes shortness of breath. With the progression of the disease, this symptom occurs even if the person is resting. This phenomenon may indicate not only high blood pressure, but also the development of heart failure.

Some medications can cause sodium and water retention in the body. This causes side effects in the form of leg swelling.

Visual impairment, which appears as a result of high blood pressure, is characterized by the appearance of goosebumps, a veil or fog before the eyes. This is due to the fact that blood circulation is disturbed in the retina. Due to the lack of necessary treatment, fiber can exfoliate, which will lead to deterioration of vision or its complete loss.

Forms and stages of arterial hypertension

Depending on the causes of hypertension is primary and secondary.

If the increase in pressure is observed for no apparent reason, then this is primary hypertension, and if the cause was found, it is secondary.

In primary hypertension, a chronic increase in pressure cannot be explained by any pathologies of the internal organs.

Secondary hypertension occurs for certain reasons.

There are such forms of this type of pathology:

1. Renal. This form of hypertension has a low prevalence. It occurs due to disorders of the kidneys.
2. Endocrine form, caused by hormonal disorders.
3. Neurogenic. This form develops with brain tumors, cysticercosis, head injuries, infectious and inflammatory processes.
4. The drug form of hypertension develops as a side effect of the abuse of certain medications.
5. Hemodynamic or cardiovascular form of hypertension develops with isolated damage to the heart and blood vessels. Blood pressure rises due to changes in systemic blood flow.

Based on how much the internal organs were affected, it is believed that three stages of the disease can be distinguished:

• The first stage is called transient. Its prevalence is quite high. In this case, the pressure rises periodically. This is due to spasm of the arterioles. Oxygen does not enter the walls of blood vessels, which causes dystrophic changes. After blood pressure has returned to normal, microcirculation is restored, but physical activity can lead to left ventricular hypertrophy. Arterial hypertension at this stage is treated if the patient does not expose himself to emotional and physical stress and takes special drugs. This is a mild stage of hypertension, which is successfully stopped by medications.
• In the second stage, there is a violation of the state of the arteries and the pressure steadily rises. This is due to disorders in the cardiovascular system. At this stage, the walls of the vessels thicken, their elasticity decreases, and the arterioles narrow. Due to the fact that the body is in a state of constantly elevated pressure, the heart suffers from excessive workload and the left ventricle can hypertrophy.
• Arterial hypertension in the third stage leads to disruption of the work of all organs. Such a consequence occurs as a result of damage and changes in the arteries.

Such a concept as arterial hypertension was also classified according to the degree of risk:

• mild hypertension. In this case, blood pressure indicators do not exceed 160/100 mm. rt. Art.
• Moderate degree - pressure not higher than 180/110 mm. rt. Art.
• Severe hypertension - pressure above 180/110 mm. rt. Art.

Age, high cholesterol, smoking, heredity, overweight, sedentary lifestyle, and diabetes can worsen the course of the disease.

Some of these factors can be eliminated. For example, quit smoking, normalize cholesterol levels, lead an active lifestyle. But age, genetic predisposition cannot be changed.

By determining the degree of development of the disease, doctors can predict the development of complications in the coming years.

For a mild degree of hypertension, slight deviations are characteristic. Patients are advised to change their lifestyle to improve their well-being.

If hypertension is moderate, then drug therapy will be prescribed.

A high degree requires a complete examination and a combination of drug and non-drug methods.

Diagnosis of the disease

The high prevalence of hypertension makes it a dangerous disease. Diagnostic measures are carried out in order to establish the degree of increase in blood pressure, exclude or identify symptoms of the disease.

To fully determine whether a patient has hypertension or not, they measure pressure, collect an anamnesis, prescribe laboratory and instrumental methods of examination. When collecting an anamnesis, the age of the patient is taken into account first of all, since the prevalence of the disease among people over 40 is higher than among young people. They also take into account bad habits of a person, the presence or absence of excess weight, physical activity. The patient's complaints are also taken into account, as they may indicate damage to the internal organs.

The main method of diagnosis is the measurement of blood pressure. It is carried out several times to obtain accurate information. During the examination, the doctor assesses the condition of the patient's skin, the presence or absence of edema and other symptoms of damage to internal organs.

If the skin is pale, then the patient has impaired kidney function. The presence of excess weight also worsens the prognosis. Examine the eye vessels, check the pulse. An important part of the diagnosis is the daily monitoring of blood pressure.

Of the laboratory and instrumental methods, the following are used:

1. Electrocardiogram.
2. Ultrasound examination of the heart.
3. Analysis of urine and blood.

How is hypertension treated?

Hypertension and hypertension are treated in combination. It is necessary to use not only drugs, but also to change the way of life. Therapy is aimed at lowering blood pressure. This avoids serious complications.

If arterial hypertension of the first degree, then they are monitoring. The patient's blood pressure is regularly measured for a month, without prescribing any medication. If the pressure is normal, then they do not resort to drug therapy, but manage with a diet and regular measurement of blood pressure. If the indicators begin to rise, prescribe drugs.

If the patient is over 50 years of age, then he is immediately prescribed drugs to reduce pressure. For the treatment of younger people resort to non-drug therapy.

Such therapy is aimed at getting rid of bad habits, normalizing weight, limiting salt intake, and increasing the level of physical activity.

Also for the patient it is necessary to create a moderate schedule of work and rest.

They may prescribe sedatives in the form of valerian or motherwort. Insomnia is treated with barbiturates.

Diet and a healthy lifestyle can eliminate the syndrome of arterial hypertension at an early stage. Such treatment gives a positive result to people whose age has exceeded 50 years.

Patients are advised to consume no more than a teaspoon of salt per day, it is also necessary to adhere to a balanced diet. You need to eat enough calories. If you are overweight, you need a low-calorie diet.

It is also important to remember that in hypertension, drugs to lower blood pressure are selected individually. Therefore, it is not worth doing it yourself.

The result depends on how correctly the medicine is chosen. To avoid stroke and other problems, every effort must be made to normalize blood pressure.

The prevalence of the disease is decreasing among people who are treated in special health facilities, such as sanatoriums. Such enterprises provide the patient with proper nutrition, proper rest, and physiotherapy.

The following medications are used to lower blood pressure:

1. Beta blockers. They affect the nerve receptors of the cardiovascular system.
2. Diuretics speed up recovery. They remove excess fluid from the body, due to which the volume of blood decreases and pressure decreases.
3. Vasodilators promote the expansion of arterioles.

Only a specialist should prescribe these medicines. It takes into account the age and individual characteristics of the patient's body.

The correctness of treatment is of great importance for the health and life of the patient.

To date, there are drugs that combine several mechanisms of action. This allows you to achieve the desired effect with the help of small doses of medicines.

People suffering from arterial hypertension need to constantly take drugs to reduce pressure and at the same time blood pressure indicators must be monitored. Based on changes in pressure, the dosage is reduced or increased.

A hypertensive crisis needs to be urgently stopped. After the implementation of urgent measures, treatment begins.

To relieve nervous excitement, sedatives may be prescribed. To reduce high blood pressure, a Clonidine tablet can be used, which must be placed under the tongue. To reduce excessive pressure, Clonidine can be injected into a vein or muscle. After the administration of the drug, the patient should be in a state of complete rest for several hours.

With a very severe course of the disease, Pentamine is prescribed to lower blood pressure. It is slowly injected into a vein or muscle and after that, blood pressure is strictly controlled.

How to avoid hypertension

The prevalence of arterial hypertension proves that people need to know how to avoid this disease.

Prevention of pathology consists in:

• Proper nutrition and moderate exercise. It is necessary to perform special physical exercises to improve well-being.
• Running, swimming, walking, breathing exercises, cardio training can increase working capacity and improve health. But the load should be moderate. Increase the duration of classes should be gradually.

• It is also important to consume salt in moderation. It is recommended to cook food without salt at all. It is recommended to refuse smoked and canned foods, as they contain salt. Animal fats, fried and spicy foods should also be avoided. The diet should be dominated by fruits, vegetables and dairy products. Such a diet will help normalize cholesterol levels, get rid of excess weight and enrich the body with vitamins.
• To prevent the disease, it is also necessary to strengthen the nervous system. For this, auto-training, meditation, self-hypnosis are used. It is imperative to get rid of bad habits, as they significantly increase the chances of developing serious diseases.

If the diagnosis of arterial hypertension has already been made, then resort to measures to protect the internal organs. To do this, massage, acupuncture, herbs, vitamin complexes are added to the above recommendations.

Through simple measures, the prevalence of the disease can be reduced. The consequences of arterial hypertension should make everyone think that it is better to take care of your health than to spend your whole life on pills.