High Blood Pressure: The Silent Killer
February 2021 is American Heart Month and I wanted to discuss High Blood Pressure (HBP) also known as The Silent Killer. According to the American Heart Association nearly 50% of Americans have high blood pressure and many don’t know. (1) Through out my nursing career I have seen many people who have been surprised at the diagnosis of high blood pressure because they “felt fine”. As we age the chance for high blood pressure increases. After the age of 40 the likelihood of having high blood pressure goes up. For women after menopause the chance of high blood pressure goes up even more.
High blood pressure (hypertension) is a common condition in which the long-term force of the blood against your artery walls is high enough that it may eventually cause health problems, such as heart disease.
Blood pressure is determined both by the amount of blood your heart pumps and the amount of resistance to blood flow in your arteries. The more blood your heart pumps and the narrower your arteries, the higher your blood pressure. A blood pressure reading is given in millimeters of mercury (mm Hg). It has two numbers shown as a fraction.
- Top number (systolic pressure). The first, or upper, number measures the pressure in your arteries when your heart beats. Or think of this number as your heart at work.
- Bottom number (diastolic pressure). The second, or lower, number measures the pressure in your arteries between beats. Or think of this number as your heart at rest.
You can have high blood pressure for years without any symptoms. Uncontrolled high blood pressure increases your risk of serious health problems, including heart attack and stroke. Fortunately, high blood pressure can be easily detected. And once you know you have high blood pressure, you can work with your doctor to control it.
High blood pressure is called the “Silent Killer” because most people with high blood pressure have no signs or symptoms, even if blood pressure readings reach dangerously high levels.
Only a few people with high blood pressure may have headaches, shortness of breath, or nosebleeds. But those signs and symptoms aren’t specific and people don’t correlate the signs with high blood pressure. When the afore mentioned signs and symptoms do occur, their blood pressure has reached the severe life-threatening stage.
The Silent Killer is an appropriate name because the complications of high blood pressure can damage blood vessels as well as internal organs. The higher the blood pressure and longer it goes uncontrolled, the greater the damage and chance of death.
Uncontrolled high blood pressure can lead to complications including:
- Heart attack or stroke. High blood pressure can cause hardening and thickening of the arteries (atherosclerosis), which can lead to a heart attack, stroke, or other complications.
- Aneurysm. Increased blood pressure can cause your blood vessels to weaken and bulge, forming an aneurysm. If an aneurysm ruptures, it can be life-threatening.
- Heart failure. To pump blood against the higher pressure in your vessels, the heart must work harder. This causes the walls of the heart’s pumping chamber to thicken (left ventricular hypertrophy). Eventually, the thickened muscle may have a hard time pumping enough blood to meet your body’s needs, which can lead to heart failure.
- Weakened and narrowed blood vessels in your kidneys. This can prevent these organs from functioning normally.
- Thickened, narrowed or torn blood vessels in the eyes. This can result in vision loss.
- Metabolic syndrome. This syndrome is a group of disorders of your body’s metabolism, including increased waist size, high triglycerides, decreased high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol (the “good” cholesterol), high blood pressure, and high insulin levels. These conditions make you more likely to develop diabetes, heart disease, and stroke.
- Trouble with memory or understanding. Uncontrolled high blood pressure may also affect your ability to think, remember, and learn. Trouble with memory or understanding concepts is more common in people with high blood pressure.
- Dementia. Narrowed or blocked arteries can limit blood flow to the brain, leading to a certain type of dementia (vascular dementia). A stroke that interrupts blood flow to the brain also can cause vascular dementia.
So, just what is a desired blood pressure and what is considered high blood pressure?
Normal: 120/80 or less Elevated: 120-129/bottom number less than 80 High blood pressure/Stage 1: 130-139/80-90 High blood pressure/Stage 2: 140 or higher/90 or higher Hypertensive crisis: higher than 180/120 or higher
Treatment of high blood pressure can take many different routes from pharmaceutical intervention to lifestyle changes. But high blood pressure can’t be treated unless you are diagnosed.
In summary have your annual physicals and go to see your physician if you’re not feeling well. If you have a family history of high blood pressure or other cardiac issues, keep you check ups. It can be the difference between life and death because of the Silent Killer.
