Hypertension Specialist

What causes hypertension?

Your blood pressure needs to stay within a specific range to ensure your brain and body get the oxygen and nutrients needed to keep working. When blood pressure drops, they lose vital oxygen. And when your blood pressure gets too high, it causes serious health problems.

Most cases of hypertension develop due to:

• Being overweight or obese
• Not getting enough exercise
• Consuming too much salt
• Living with constant stress
• Smoking cigarettes
• Drinking too much alcohol

Conditions such as chronic kidney disease and obstructive sleep apnea can also cause hypertension.

How does hypertension affect my health?

When you have high blood pressure, the increased force of blood damages the artery walls. This damage creates areas where cholesterol can easily stick to the wall and accumulate into plaque, a condition called atherosclerosis.

Over time, fatty plaque enlarges and hardens, resulting in problems such as:

• Coronary artery disease
• Peripheral artery disease
• Carotid artery disease
• Abdominal aortic aneurysms
• Chronic kidney disease
• Heart failure
• Vision loss

Uncontrolled hypertension significantly increases your risk of having a heart attack or stroke.

Does hypertension cause symptoms?

Unfortunately, hypertension almost never causes symptoms. You won’t have a clue the condition exists until an area of plaque gets large enough to significantly block circulation or rupture.

When plaque reduces blood flow, your muscles don’t get enough oxygen to function. As a result, you experience pain when using those muscles. Depending on the location of the plaque, you may have symptoms like leg pain or chest pain.

Blocked arteries in your heart cause a heart attack. If the plaque ruptures, it creates a blood clot that can stop the flow of blood in your lungs, heart, or brain.

How is hypertension treated?

When diagnosed at an early stage, changing your diet, getting exercise, and losing weight may be all you need to lower your blood pressure. It’s also important to stop smoking as it also damages the artery walls.

If lifestyle changes don’t help or you have severe hypertension, the Cardiac Care Consultants team prescribes medications to lower your blood pressure. For example, some medications relax your arteries, while others help your body eliminate water and salt.

The Cardiac Care Consultants team also performs minimally invasive procedures such as angioplasty and stenting or atherectomy to eliminate plaque and restore normal circulation.

If you haven’t had your blood pressure checked within the last year or you need ongoing hypertension management, call Cardiac Care Consultants, or book an appointment online today.