Blood Pressure

What is Blood Pressure (BP)?

  • Blood pressure is the pressure of blood forceful against the walls of body arteries. Every time the heartbeats, it pumps blood into the arteries. Arteries take blood from the heart to other parts of the body.
  • Blood pressure (BP) normally increases and falls during the whole day. BP is highest when the heart beats, pumping the blood from the heart. This is called “Systolic Pressure”. When the heart is on rest mode, between beats, blood pressure falls. It’s called “Diastolic Pressure”.
  • Blood pressure reading uses these two numbers.
  • Generally, the systolic number derives before or above the diastolic number.
  • For example, 120mmHg/80mmHg means a systolic pressure of 120mmHg and a diastolic pressure of 80mmHg.
  • High or Low BP leads to Heart disease.

What Does the Systolic Blood Pressure Number Mean?

When the heart beats, it squeezes and pushes blood through the arteries to the rest of your body. This force introduces pressure on those blood vessels, and that’s your systolic blood pressure.

Systolic blood pressure number means:

  • Normal: Below 120 mmHg
  • Elevated: 120-129 mmHg
  • Stage 1 high blood pressure (Named as “Hypertension”): 130-139 mmHg
  • Stage 2 hypertension: 140 mmHg or more
  • Hypertensive crisis: 180 mmHg or more.

What Does the Diastolic Blood Pressure Number Mean?

The diastolic measurement, or the bottom number, is the pressure in the arteries once the heart rests between beats. It’s a time when the heart fills with blood and gets enough oxygen.

Diastolic blood pressure number means:

  • Normal: Lower than 80 mmHg
  • Stage 1 hypertension: 80-89 mmHg
  • Stage 2 hypertension: 90 mmHg or more
  • Hypertensive crisis: 120 mmHg or more
  • Tablet: 2: According to American Heart Association

Tablet: 1: According to Source

Normal*
Systolic: less than 120 mm hg
Diastolic: less than 80 mm hg		Normal$
Systolic: less than 120 mm Hg
Diastolic: less than 80 mm Hg
At Risk (prehypertension)Systolic: 120–139 mm hg
Diastolic: 80–89 mm hg		ElevatedSystolic: 120–129 mm Hg
Diastolic: less than 80 mm Hg
High Blood Pressure (Called: hypertension)Systolic: 140 mm Hg or higher
Diastolic: 90 mm Hg or higher		High blood pressure  (called: hypertension)Systolic: 130 mm Hg or higher
Diastolic: 80 mm Hg or higher

Source:

* According to The Seventh Report of the Joint National Committee on Prevention, Detection, Evaluation, and Treatment of High BP (2003 Guideline) (Whelton PK, Carey RM, Aronow, WS, Casey DE, Collins KJ, Himmelfarb CD, et al. 2017)

$ The American College of Cardiology/American Heart Association Guideline for the Prevention, Detection, Evaluation, and Management of High BP in Adults (2017 Guideline) $ National High Blood Pressure Education Program

Tablet: 2: According to American Heart Association

BP Category **Systolic Upper Side (mm Hg) Diastolic Lower Side (mm Hg)
NormalBelow 120&Less than 80
Elevated120-129&Less than 80
Stage 1 high blood pressure (also called hypertension)130-139Or80-90
Stage 2 hypertension140 or moreOr90 or Higher
Hypertensive crisisHigher than 180& /OrHigher that 120

What problems does high blood pressure and heart disease risk?

  • High BP leads to damage the health in many directions. It can affect on vital organs & that could be heart, brain, kidneys, and eyes.
  • It can be manageable if the patient watch out properly and on time.

Heart Attack and Heart Disease

  • High BP can damage your arteries by making them less elastic, which decreases the flow of blood and oxygen to your heart and leads to “Heart Disease”.
  • In addition,
    • Reduced Blood flow to the heart may lead:
    • Chest pain (Called “Angina”).
    • A heart attack (Known as “Myocardial infarction”)happens when the blood supply to your heart is blocked and heart muscle begins to die without enough oxygen.
    • Heart failure isa condition that means your heart can’t pump enough blood and oxygen to your other organs.

Stroke and Brain Problems

  • High blood pressure could lead to the arteries that supply blood and oxygen to the brain burst or being blocked, causing a “Brain Stroke”.
  • Brain cells may die during a stroke because of not getting enough oxygen. Stroke can be a reason for serious disabilities in speech, movement, and other basic activities for routine life.
  • Paralysis can occur.
  • A stroke can take the life of the Patient.

Kidney Disease

  • Adults with diabetes and other complication, high BP, or both have a higher risk of developing chronic kidney disease. This might lead to serious organ effects.

Pericarditis

  • Pericarditis is swelling and irritation of the thin, sac-like tissue (pericardium) adjacent to the heart

Diagnosis and Tests for Blood Pressure and Heart Disease

  • Sphygmomanometer
  • Aldosterone Test 
  • Chloride Blood Test 
  • Measuring BP routingly
  • Renin Test 
  • ECG
  • ECO

What changes you need to do for maintain Blood Pressure and Heart Disease?

Lifestyle changes include:

  • Cutting back on sodium. Take advice from the doctor what your daily sodium limit should be. Read the Nutrition Facts label on food products before having it or purchasing.
  • Do more & suitable exercise. (Includes aerobic exercise (the kind that makes your heart beat faster)).
  • Yoga and Meditation
  • Enough Sleep
  • Losing weight by means of diet or exercise.
  • Eating a healthy diet. The DASH diet is planned to improve blood pressure (BP). DASH – “Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension”. It imposes favourable to green vegetables, nutritional full fruits, whole grains, low-fat dairy, poultry, fish, and chicken.
DASH Eating Plan- To avoid Blood Pressure
DASH Eating Plan
DASH (Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension) is a flexible and composed intake plan that helps create a heart-healthy eating style for life.
  • Limiting alcohol to no more than one drink a day for women or two for men.
  • Managing stress

If you also need medication to lower your BP and heart disease , there are several types:

  • Diuretics
  • ACE inhibitors
  • Alpha blockers
  • Angiotensin II receptor blockers (ARBs)
  • Beta-blockers
  • Calcium channel blockers
  • Central agonists
  • Vasodilators
  • Combination medications

Orthostatic hypotension or postural hypotension

It is a form of low BP that occurs when a patient stands up from sitting or lying down posture. Orthostatic hypotension can make the patient feel dizzy or lightheaded to faint

Atherosclerosis :

It is a condition where cholesterol plaque build up in the body arteries wall. This condition cause blocking of blood flow, narrowing of arteries, high BP and heart attack.

Diagnosis of Atherosclerosis:

  1. ECG or ECK (Electrocardiogram)
  2. CRP (C-reactive protein)

Cardiomyopathy :

It is a disease related to the heart muscle. In this condition pumping of blood is harder for the heart.

Types of cardiomyopathy include

  1. Dilated cardiomyopathy,
  2. Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy
  3. Restrictive cardiomyopathy.

Note: If you need medication, your doctor will consider which type is best for you. This is for only knowledge purpose.

References:

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