![]() ![]() That's why high blood pressure has been called "the silent killer." Still, many people who suffer from high blood pressure don't know they have it, and people can have high blood pressure for years without knowing they have it. While there is no cure for primary hypertension, it is easily detected and is usually controllable. It is important to diagnose this type of hypertension because the treatment differs from primary hypertension. Secondary hypertension is somewhat different because it represents all of the specific diseases that cause elevated blood pressure. This type of hypertension is called primary or essential high blood pressure. The cause of approximately 90 percent to 95 percent of all hypertension isn't known. If you have cardiovascular disease, including coronary heart disease, congestive heart failure or stroke, your health care provider may recommend treating your blood pressure with medication and lifestyle modifications even if you are not diagnosed with hypertension. The new guidelines also include specific instructions for getting accurate blood pressure readings, which involves using proper measuring devices, taking several readings in the health care provider's office and confirming the readings with out-of-office measurements. These new classifications, released by the American College of Cardiology and the American Heart Association in 2017, reflect growing evidence that the risk of cardiovascular disease progressively increases from normal blood pressure to elevated to stage 1 and 2 hypertension. If you have systolic and diastolic readings that fall in two categories, you will be designated with the higher blood pressure category. Levels of 140 mm Hg or greater systolic or 90 mm Hg or greater diastolic are classified as stage 2 hypertension. If your systolic blood pressure is 120 to 129 mm Hg systolic and your diastolic pressure is less than 80 mm Hg, you have elevated blood pressure.Ī blood pressure level of 130 to 139 mm Hg systolic or 80 to 89 mm Hg diastolic is considered stage 1 hypertension (high blood pressure). ![]() If you are not acutely ill, are over 18 years of age and are not taking antihypertensive drugs, a blood pressure reading of less than 120 mm Hg systolic and less than 80 mm Hg diastolic (<120/80) is considered normal. Depending on your activities, your blood pressure may increase or decrease throughout the day. The second number, diastolic blood pressure, is the pressure that exists in the arteries between heartbeats. The first number is the systolic blood pressure, the pressure used when the heart beats. 'īlood pressure is typically expressed as two numbers, one over the other, and is measured in millimeters of mercury (noted as mm Hg). About 30 percent of women have high blood pressure. More men than women have hypertension, until women reach menopause, when their risk becomes greater than men's. In addition, being overweight, drinking alcohol excessively (defined as more than two drinks a day for men and one drink a day for women) and taking oral contraceptives may increase blood pressure.Ībout half of Americans with high blood pressure are women. People with other conditions such as diabetes and kidney disease are likely to become hypertensive. Hypertension can occur in both children and adults, but it is more common in adults, particularly African Americans and the elderly. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. High blood pressure was a primary or contributing cause of death for 410,000 Americans in 2014, according to the U.S. When blood pressure stays elevated over time, however, it is called high blood pressure or hypertension.Īccording to the American Heart Association, about 85.7 million Americans have high blood pressure. Normal blood pressure effectively and harmlessly pushes the blood from your heart to your body's organs and muscles so they can receive the oxygen and nutrients they need.īlood pressure is variable-it rises and falls during the day. Left untreated, it can damage your small blood vessels and organs and lead to heart attacks, stroke, kidney failure and circulatory problems.īlood pressure is the amount of force your blood exerts against the walls of your arteries. High blood pressure, or hypertension, occurs when your blood pressure is elevated over time. ![]() Blood pressure is the amount of force your blood exerts against the walls of your arteries.
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