Diuretics for high blood pressure: pills, diuretics, folk remedies

Diuretics for hypertension, according to the results of numerous clinical studies, experts rank among the most effective drugs in the fight for stable pressure. Especially therapy with diuretic drugs has shown good results in the treatment of elderly people, in whom the main mechanism for the development of hypertension is the retention of excess fluid in the body.

How diuretics work

Recognizing hypertension is quite simple by one of the main symptoms of the disease - high blood pressure. The main cause of this disease, but, of course, not the only one, is the excess fluid and sodium salts in the blood vessels.

Therefore, the use of drugs called diuretics is justified for therapeutic purposes in the treatment of hypertension. Moreover, diuretic agents are included in the complex action therapy and in the category of agents used separately in the independent treatment of the disease.

It was previously mentioned that the main purpose of diuretics is to remove fluid from the body, which accumulates in excessive amounts, and with it an excess amount of sodium. Diuretics have a powerful effect on cells whose purpose is filtration and reabsorption, which takes place in the renal canals. Such an effect significantly reduces the volume of fluid inside the vessels and the pressure that is exerted on the walls of the arteries, as a result of which the narrowing of the lumen becomes smaller.

Among other things, diuretics can block the calcium channels in the arteries, causing them to dilate. The use of diuretics can, albeit slightly, reduce cardiac output. As a result, not only the pressure decreases, but there is also a risk of serious complications in hypertension.

Diuretics for hypertension experts rightly consider drugs, the so-called first line.

If we analyze the recommendations given by doctors, there is a very clear list of drugs that are most often prescribed to normalize high blood pressure.

Basically, specialists prescribe thiazide diuretics and calcium antagonists. Extreme care should be taken to use such drugs at a dosage that exceeds the amount prescribed by the doctor, because they can "wash out" useful minerals from the body.

Diuretic drugs are prescribed to patients with arterial hypertension, which occurs in conjunction with heart failure.

Most often this happens in older people. In the vast majority of cases, many antihypertensive drugs are contraindicated for elderly patients, not only in the case of heart failure, but also in the presence of osteoporosis, and also if there is isolating systolic hypertension - the upper pressure indicators increase greatly.

By the way, the cost of medications of such an action is a factor of no small importance. Because it is the elderly with their small limited income - pensions, that make up the main group of patients, which are called hypertensive patients. Treatment with expensive medications for them can be simply unbearable.

What medications are prescribed by doctors

Treatment with diuretics is prescribed mainly depending on the patient's well-being, the presence of concomitant diseases and how quickly it is necessary to achieve pressure stabilization. The list includes the following groups of diuretics: loop, potassium-sparing and thiazide.

Today, doctors consider all the important aspects of the effects of all types of drugs.

Therefore, the treatment of hypertension with diuretics by doctors is built according to the principle, which is as follows:

• the chemical composition of the drug;
• area of ​​influence;
• mechanism, speed and force of impact;
• how long the action lasts;
• the presence of side effects.

In therapy, it is very important, from a medical point of view, to take into account the classification of diuretics, dividing them according to the duration of action, the speed of onset of relief, and also the power of exposure.

If we compare loop diuretics with thiazide diuretics, they have a stronger effect, which is why this group of medications is prescribed in cases where emergency situations arise, for example, if you need to quickly remove the cupping of blood vessels and thereby prevent a hypertensive crisis.

The biggest disadvantages of this group of drugs, perhaps, include a limited time period of action, it is too short. In addition, they remove minerals from the body - potassium, magnesium, sodium, calcium. Doctors have found a way to protect the patient from such exposure, and for this they prescribe, along with taking loop diuretics, Panangin.

"Panangin" - tablets, a combined composition containing potassium and magnesium, which is used in cases where it is necessary to normalize the violation of the water and electrolyte balance in the body, as well as create metabolic support for the heart muscle. It is especially important to prescribe the drug when complex treatment of arrhythmia is required.

When loop diuretics are prescribed to hypertension, the list includes the following:

• "Furosemide";
• "Torasemide";
• "Priretanide";
• "Bumetonide";
• entacrynic acid.

All of these funds are used orally, mainly in the morning on an empty stomach or as injections. Assimilation of funds was noted within 70% if the drug is used in the form of tablets and 97% if the patient is administered the drug subcutaneously.

Now let's look at the next group - thiazide diuretics. These are, in fact, medications endowed with a medium-sized impact force. A distinctive feature, mainly, is that they allow you to stabilize and normalize the exchange of sodium salts for potassium substances.

The list of thiazide diuretics includes drugs containing chlorothiazide and hydrochlorothiazide. This group of drugs has received widespread use and recognition in the treatment of hypertension, due not only to high efficiency, but also because when using such drugs, patients with mild heart failure do not need to limit themselves too much in salt intake.

The concentration of substances of active action in the patient's body reaches its maximum level after 3-4 hours, and the action continues at the same time for half a day, at least. So "Chlorthalidone" is recommended to be taken only once within 24 hours, and "Chlorthiazide" tablets should be consumed at 500 mg, the number of doses is 4, that is, every six hours.

That is why a group of drugs that do not excrete potassium are used together with the above forms of drugs. Tablets included in this group are prescribed to patients with high blood pressure in combination with osteoporosis. Such an appointment is justified, in terms of measures to prevent new fractures, in people suffering from osteoporosis.

As for the list of potassium-sparing diuretics, they include Veroshpiron, Aldakton, Amiloride, Triampur and others. It should be noted right away that all of the listed tablets have one very serious side effect - the risk of developing renal failure. This is especially true for people with diabetes.

Depending on the severity of the disease, doctors prescribe diuretic drugs to patients, the effect of which is considered strong. In medical practice, funds are allocated that are considered the most powerful, such as Lasix, Mannitol, Spironolactone.

Lasix is ​​available in the form of tablets and injections. One of the advantages of this medicine, of course, can be called a fairly quick onset of the expected result - a decrease in pressure occurs after one hour if the patient has taken the pills or just a few minutes if the patient is administered the drug parenterally - intramuscularly or intravenously. It should also be noted that the positive effect of this remedy lasts at least 8 hours.

Now let's look at the action of another potent drug - Spironolactone. It is prescribed to patients suffering from edema, in particular with edema of the heart muscle. If this medicine is taken together with Flurosemide or Hypothiazide, then the effect comes faster, while lasting longer.

Today, in the treatment of hypertension, good results are shown by tablets of a combined composition, which have two actions at once at the same time - a diuretic and a pressure-reducing one. The main advantage of such drugs is a quick and fairly long-lasting effect - 1-3 hours after administration, the desired effect occurs and lasts at least 8 hours.

We bring to the attention of the reader a list of combination drugs that are prescribed for high blood pressure:

• "Diazide";
• "Diursan";
• "Isobar";
• "Lasilactone";
• "Moduretic";
• "Thialoride";
• "Ecodurex";
• "Vero-Triamtizide"
• "Amitrit" and others.

However, it is not always possible to prescribe potent drugs for the treatment of hypertension, and then a group of so-called mild drugs with a diuretic character comes to the rescue. They are usually prescribed during pregnancy, when it is necessary to get rid of edema, as well as to children and the elderly who have high blood pressure.

For the elderly and children, potassium-sparing mild diuretic drugs are prescribed in cases where it is necessary to bring down the pressure indicators by 10-20 mm Hg.

It is important to understand that treatment should always be prescribed by a doctor.

What drugs he prescribes for the treatment and prevention of hypertension will depend on many factors - the age of the patient, the presence of concomitant diseases, and, most importantly, the severity of arterial hypertension, that is, on pressure readings.

Folk remedies

Folk diuretics for hypertension have been used for a long time and it must be admitted that many of them have a good reputation even among medical specialists. Of course, such drugs mainly have a diuretic effect of a mild nature. However, without them, it is sometimes impossible to achieve the desired therapeutic effect. Then herbal preparations and diuretic infusions come to the rescue. When asked which of the herbs are the most common in the treatment of hypertension, doctors always answer in different ways.

However, according to experts, the list of herbs that have a diuretic effect includes the following types of plants:

• cranberries - leaves of the plant;
• inflorescences and leaves of blue cornflower;
• burdock root;
• bearberry.

Of course, when pressure surges are within acceptable limits, and if the doctor considers such treatment acceptable, you can resort to the help of the medicinal plants described above.

Conclusion

Diuretics in the treatment of hypertension are not a panacea. It should be remembered that the uncontrolled use of these funds can result in serious complications for the patient. In addition, diuretics can cause increased fatigue, which is mainly associated with a low level of potassium in the blood, the deposition of salts due to the fact that calcium is retained in the body.

In men, when taking diuretics, there are often problems associated with potency. In order to prevent the development of the described side effects, you should not take such drugs in a dosage exceeding the permissible norm, and at the same time, you should not prescribe treatment yourself, but consult a doctor.