In 2000, 972 million (26%) adults had Hypertension (high blood pressure) worldwide. In 2025 about 1.5 billion people (29%) are projected to have hypertension. Even in established countries, such as the United States, many go untreated as only 65% of the patients are aware of their hypertension. In addition, among those that undergo treatment only 1 in 3 patient have their blood pressure controlled.
Blood Pressure is force of blood against your artery walls as it circulates through your body. BP normally rises and falls throughout the day. A normal blood pressure reading is 120/80 mm Hg with the systolic (top number) showing pressure when the heart beats and diastolic pressure (lower number) at rest between heartbeats, when the heart refills with blood. High Blood Pressure is a silent killer that often has no warning signs or symptoms, making it essential to have your Blood Pressure checked regularly. High Blood-Pressure may lead to some of these symptoms:
- Severe headache
- Difficulty breathing
- Fatigue or confusion
- Irregular heartbeat
- Vision problems
- Blood in the urine
- Chest pain
- Pounding in your chest, neck, or ears
Remember: Untreated hypertension can lead to serious diseases including Stroke, Heart Disease and Kidney Failure.
Uncontrolled Blood Pressure and a Stiff Heart
If blood pressure is persistently not controlled, it causes over-exertion of the heart. As the heart continuously pumps at 72 times/min against high blood pressure, the heart wall muscles becomes thick and stiff over the years, which is called left ventricular hypertrophy (LVH).
Kidneys also play a crucial role in regulating the blood pressure. Persistent High Blood Pressure leads to nephrosclerosis, a renal disease that starts with proteinuria progresses to kidney insufficiency and finally to end-stage kidney failure requiring dialysis.
How You Can Help Your Body
By controlling your blood pressure, you delay the effects of hypertension on your organs to much later in your life. For every increase in 20/10 mm Hg of blood pressure, there is 2-fold increase mortality and even a small reduction in blood pressure translates in to a benefit. Below are some suggestions to help you control your blood pressure.
- Simple lifestyle and dietary changes can help reduce blood pressure
- Take your blood pressure medications on time and as prescribed
- Properly treated high blood pressure should not interfere with daily living
Remember: Failure to control your blood pressure can lead to serious health problems and sometimes even death
High Blood Pressure Treatment:
The initial treatment for high blood pressure is a healthier lifestyle, inclusive of exercise, quitting smoking and good dietary habits. The second line of treatment is antihypertensive medications, which targets different organs or receptors to lower blood pressure—some remove extra fluid and salt from the body, some slow down the heart contraction and others relax and widen blood vessels. In many patients an effective therapy is a combination of these drugs.
About a 1/3 of the patients have "Resistant Hypertension". Their blood pressure remains high (>140/90 for all patients, >130/80 for diabetes and kidney insufficiency patients) despite the use of maximum tolerated doses of 3 antihypertensive drugs and compliance to the lifestyle measures.
One of the most important cause for high blood pressure overactive sympathetic nerves that connects Kidney with the Brain. These overactive nerves can be zapped and disabled by a minimally invasive endovascular procedure called Renal Denervation. Renal Denervation has shown significant blood pressure reductions in patient with severe high blood pressure.
To Learn more about Hypertenson, High Blood Pressure, Healthy Lifestyles and Renal Denervation go to www.renaldenervationworld.org
