Hypertension

High blood pressure, also known as hypertension, is one of the most common medical problems Americans face today. According to the American Heart Association, around half of US citizens over 20 years old have high blood pressure. In our Urgent Care and around the US, hypertension is defined as blood pressure readings that is repeatedly above 140/90. High blood pressure is caused by the blood vessels of the body constricting causing the pressure of blood flow inside to rise, much like putting your thumb over the end of a garden hose. This is a natural response by the body to deliver more blood from the heart to other systems in the body.

Chronic high blood pressure, however, can put people at risk for more adverse outcomes later in life, including kidney disease, stroke, heart attacks, and more. Hypertension can have no symptoms at all, so it is important to keep regular doctor visits to monitor changes in your blood pressure and also to measure at home using an automated or manual blood pressure cuff.

When is high blood pressure expected? There are many times where people can have a normal high blood pressure in certain situations. These include:

· Exercise

· Stress

Chronic high blood pressure also has a long list of possible causes. Here are some specific scenarios of when high blood pressure can be a concern for development of hypertension. These include:

· Family history of hypertension

· Chronic stress

· Obesity

· Smoking

· Alcohol use

· Inadequate daily exercise

· Prior Kidney disease

· Prior Diabetes

· High Salt Diet

· Caffeine usage

· Medications

At Casa San Pio, we take the blood pressure of patients at each visit to monitor changes over time. Urgent Care providers can use the information in your patient chart to see how your blood pressure has changed over time and understand more about the problems you are having. For example, a single visit with a high reading may not be of concern if you just came from the gym, but multiple high blood pressure readings can start to raise some questions about your cardiovascular health.

Providers at Casa San Pio are well trained to recognize hypertension and help patients to start therapies to help prevent the development of worse outcomes. At our Urgent Care, treatment can include a variety of methods, including medications, diet and exercise changes and stress management therapy to help control triggers of high blood pressure in your life.

Author: Patrick Bidros