The World Health Organization (WHO) states that 1.13 billion people are suffering from hypertension (elevated Blood Pressure), and only 1 in 5 have it under control. Hypertension control is a significant issue globally because people with hypertension are at risk of heart disease and stroke. Even though prevention is better than cure, once you suspect that you have heart disease, Dr. Shah, a specialist in the treatment of heart disease in Frisco, advises you to visit the nearest cardiac specialist immediately.
Hypertension occurs when blood pressure is too high. Two numbers describe hypertension, namely the systolic and diastolic. The former represents heartbeat pressure, whereas the second represents blood pressure when the heart is resting.
You are at risk of hypertension if you regularly consume unhealthy meals that have a high salt percentage, or are highly saturated with trans fats, are overweight or obese and also if you smoke or take alcohol. Other risk factors include old age, non-communicable diseases such as diabetes, and even if your family has a history of hypertension.
It’s difficult to tell whether you are suffering from hypertension; that’s why it is best to visit the nearest specialist if you begin to have the following symptoms: vision changes, muscle tremors, ear buzzing, regular headaches as well as nosebleeds.
Hypertension, if left untreated, can lead to heart damage. This will happen when excessive pressure leads to the hardening of your arteries, decreasing the blood flow and oxygen getting to the heart.
There are several ways in which hypertension could lead to hypertensive heart disease.
Left Ventricular Hypertrophy
This disease is a manifestation of uncontrolled hypertension. What happens is that the ventricle thickens, which diminishes elasticity. This makes blood flow confusing, and as a consequence, the left ventricle diastolic pressure increases, resulting in pulmonary congestion.
Doctors use two methods to diagnose left ventricular hypertrophy, namely the echocardiogram and electrocardiogram (ECG). The ECG is used to screen for hypertensive patients who might have organ damage. An echocardiogram assesses the symptoms of left ventricular hypertrophy in hypertensive patients.
Heart Failure
Studies show that the incidence of heart failure has increased due to hypertension. Hypertensive patients might experience an abnormality of the left ventricle, which results in diastolic dysfunction.
Older women suffering from hypertension are at the highest risk of diastolic heart failure. Most clinicians will, therefore, perform chest X-rays and other physical tests to correctly diagnose heart failure. Some of the findings, such as an absent valvular and constrictive pericarditis, will determine whether you have diastolic heart failure.
Ischemic Heart Disease
There are several reasons why most hypertensive patients end up with ischemic heart disease. These include endothelial dysfunction, increased blood viscosity, epicardial coronary artery atherosclerosis, impaired coronary flow reserve, size mismatch of the coronary artery, compression of coronary arterioles by muscle and fibrosis and thickening of the arterial wall. Regular stress testing of hypertensive patients is significant in the early detection of ischemia.
Arrhythmias
Hypertensive patients are at high risk of suffering ventricular arrhythmias. This is because hypertension could lead to altering pulse pressure leading to an increased size of the left atrium. If left untreated sudden cardiac death could occur.
Hypertension is a leading cause of mortality. You should, therefore, learn to live a healthy life eating a balanced diet and doing regular exercise. You could also find out your family’s medical history as a preventive measure to avoid being caught off-guard.
