Hypertension | High Blood Pressure - causes - signs - symptoms - Treatment

Hypertension is the opposite of Hypotension which is increased blood pressure. Hypertension or  high blood pressure is a Heart Disease in which the systemic arterial blood pressure is increased inside the arteries.


When this is so the heart has to work harder than its normal function. means heart works harder to pump the blood to all parts of the body.


Normal blood pressure is 120/80 mm/Hg. Blood Pressure is measured in two terms.

  1. Systolic
    Blood pressure is usually classified based on the systolic and diastolic blood pressures. Systolic Blood Pressure is the blood pressure in vessels during a heart beat.
    it is the blood pressure when the heart is contracting. It is specifically the maximum arterial pressure during contraction of the left ventricle of the heart. The time at which ventricular contraction occurs is called systole.
    In a blood pressure reading, the systolic pressure is typically the first number recorded. For example, with a blood pressure of 120/80 mm/Hg  the systolic pressure is 120. By "120" is meant 120 mm Hg (millimeters of mercury).
    It is also the time when the heart contracts, between the normal first and second heart sounds.
  2. Diastolic
    Diastolic blood pressure is the pressure between heartbeats. A systolic or the diastolic blood pressure measurement higher than the accepted normal values for the age of the individual.
    Diastolic Blood pressure is also known as when heart is relaxed.
    Diastolic blood pressure measures the pressure in the blood vessels between heartbeats, when your heart is resting.


    Diastolic pressure keeps changing throughout the day. the things that makes diastolic pressure change are
    1:Posture of the Body
    2:Exercise
    3:walking or running, working hard,
    4:Amount of tension taken, or anger
    5:Use of Nicotine.
and the actual measurement is systolic/diastolic mm/Hg which is the pressure in arteries between heart beats. above 140/90 mm/Hg is considered as Hypertension or High Blood Pressure.


Classification of Hypertension (High Blood Pressure):

Hypertension or Blood pressure has several sub classed including
  1. Hypertension stage 1
  2. Hypertension stage 2
  3. Isolated Systolic Hypertension
Primary Hypertension (90 to 95% causes are categorized in this category)
    Secondary Hypertension (remaining 5 to 10% causes are categorized into secondary hypertension)
      High Blood Pressure is one of the main risk factors for:

      1. Heart Failure
      2. Stroke
      3. Myocardial infarction
      4. Arterial aneurysm etc.
      It is also the leading cause of chronic kidney failure