Symptoms and treatment of hypertension.

According to the World Health Organization, hypertension is one of the most common diseases. Hypertension occurs in one in three people and is characterized by high mortality rates in severe stages. Only a complex treatment that combines medication and maintenance of a healthy lifestyle can be successful.

what is hypertension

Hypertension is a chronic disease, a pathology of the cardiovascular system. It develops as a result of a disruption in the work of the higher centers responsible for the functionality of the blood vessels. Dangerous complications of hypertension and accompanied by internal diseases.

One of the main manifestations of the disease is high blood pressure (blood pressure), which decreases only after taking special and strong medications.

Hypertension refers to a pressure of 140/90 mm Hg. and higher if confirmed during two medical examinations.

Hypertension is divided into several types:

• essential arterial hypertension,
• symptomatic arterial hypertension,
• chronic Hypertension,
• Vascular hypertension.

Symptomatic or secondary hypertension accounts for only 10% of all reported cases of the disease. Hypertensive syndrome, the second name of the disease, most often accompanies systemic lupus erythematosus, urolithiasis, anomaly and tumors of the kidneys, ischemia, toxicosis in late pregnancy and renal tuberculosis. Although hypertension does not have its own signs and characteristics, it seriously aggravates the underlying disease.

Essential hypertension is an independent form of the disease.

Chronic hypertension is usually caused by too much calcium in the blood, infectious diseases (which become chronic), diabetes mellitus, and heredity. It manifests itself in the form of nervousness, absent-mindedness, fatigue and weakness, frequent numbness of the arms and legs, slurred speech, hypertrophy of the left ventricle, and frequent pain in the region of the heart.

How does hypertension develop?

The mechanism of the development of hypertension is as follows: in response to a stress factor, a violation of tone regulation occurs in the peripheral vessels. The result is a spasm of the arterioles and the formation of a dyscirculatory and dyskinetic syndrome. The secretion of neurohormones in the aldosterone system is significantly increased. This causes a delay in the vascular bed of sodium and water, which increases the volume of blood circulation and increases pressure. During illness, the viscosity of the blood also increases, which leads to a decrease in the rate of the metabolic process in the tissues. The walls of the vessels increase in size, the space between them narrows, which affects blood flow. A high level of resistance in the periphery makes the disease irreversible. As a result of increased permeability and impregnation of the walls of blood vessels with blood plasma, arteriosclerosis and elastofibrosis develop, which leads to serious changes in the tissues of some organs.

Spontaneously, hypertension cannot occur in humans. Hypertension is usually preceded by vegetative-vascular dystonia (VD), a frequent companion of which is varicose veins.

Varicose veins and hypertension are related: the increased activity of the vessel walls in SVD leads to a decrease in their diameter. The vessel wall's resistance to blood flow increases, which increases blood pressure. Varicose veins are characterized by the thickening of the vessel wall, the formation of pockets and constrictions inside, which interfere with the normal flow of blood. Diseased veins can no longer cope with blood flow, which leads to the formation of edema in the tissues and chronic stagnation of the veins. This can turn into the development of gangrene, sepsis, and even death.

Classification of diseases

Hypertensive disease differs in the causes of increased pressure, damage to organs, the level and course of blood pressure. The disease can be benign or slowly progressive or rapidly progressive - malignant. More important is the classification according to the level and stability of the pressure. Distinguish:

• Normal GB (up to 129/85 mm Hg),
• edge (up to 140/90 mm Hg),
• first degree hypertension (up to 160/100 mm Hg),
• 2 degrees (up to 180/110 mm Hg),
• 3 degrees (more than 180/110 mm Hg).

Benign hypertension has three stages. The first or light one is characterized by increases in pressure up to 180 to 104 mm Hg, but after a short rest it returns to normal. Some people complain of headaches, trouble sleeping, fatigue, and reduced performance. However, in most cases, the mild stage continues without pronounced individual symptoms.

The second or intermediate stage is characterized by a pressure of up to 200 to 115 mm Hg. Resting. It is accompanied by sharp, stabbing pains in the head, dizziness, pain in the region of the heart. During the examination, damage to the heart is detected. Sometimes subendocardial ischemia is detected. Cerebral strokes, transient ischemia of the brain are possible.

The third or severe stage is accompanied by stable and strong pressure increases. At the beginning of the stage, the increase in pressure is intermittent, and usually manifests itself after physical exertion, as well as changes in atmospheric pressure, emotional disorders. Normalization is possible after a myocardial infarction or stroke. After a heart attack, headless hypertension often occurs. That is, a state in which only the systolic or pulse pressure decreases.

Reasons for the development of the disease

The causes of hypertension lie in the violation of the regulatory activity of the main parts of the central nervous system, which control the work of all internal organs. Frequent overexertion and overwork, both physical and mental, long-term malaise, constant and strong, stress can lead to development.

Working at night, often being in a noisy environment can also trigger the disease.

The risk group includes lovers of salty foods. Salt causes spasms in the arteries and prevents the elimination of liquids. Heredity plays an important role. The probability of occurrence of the disease increases if hypertension is present in two or more relatives.

Some diseases also provoke the development of hypertension. These include:

• Diseases of the adrenal glands and kidneys,
• thyroid Disease,
• Obesity,
• diabetic diabetes,
• Tonsillitis,
• Atherosclerosis.

Among women in the highest risk group, those who are in menopause. This is due to hormonal changes in the body, emotional exacerbations, nervous reactions. It is during menopause that about 60% of all diseases in women occur.

In men, age and sex determine the increased risk. Hypertension at the age of 20 and 30 years develops in about 9% of men. At the age of 40, the percentage increases to 35, and after 65 years, it is already 50%. Hypertension is more common in men under the age of 40 than in women. In the older age group, the proportion changes; this is explained by a large percentage of male mortality due to complications.

The causes of hypertension lie in hypodynamia and bad habits. The components of tobacco smoke cause spasm of the blood vessels and damage the thin walls of the arteries. Physical inactivity is accompanied by a slow metabolism, and in case of increased load, an untrained heart gets tired many times faster.

Symptoms

The clinic of hypertension in the initial stages can be mild. A person may not even be aware of the increased pressure and processes developing in the vessels for a long time. The first and first signs of hypertension are irritability for no apparent reason and increased fatigue.

Symptoms of hypertension in the early stages: neurotic disorders, weakness, sleep disturbances, noise and ringing in the ears and dizziness, heart palpitations.

People notice a decrease in efficiency, a loss of concentration. There is difficulty breathing. Headache with hypertension appears more often in the morning in the temporal and occipital region. At the end of the day and in the supine position it can increase. They are associated with a violation of the tone of the venules and arterioles. Symptoms of hypertension include pain in the area of the heart. This is due to the greater work of the heart muscle to overcome the increasing resistance. As a result, a dissociation between the needs and capabilities of the myocardium occurs, which leads to angina pectoris.

Signs of hypertension at a later date are veiling and blinking of "flies" before the eyes, as well as other photopsias. They are explained by spasms of the arterioles of the retina. Malignant hypertension may be accompanied by retinal hemorrhages, leading to blindness. In rare cases, symptoms of hypertension are manifested by vomiting, swelling of the hands and numbness of the fingers, chills, in the morning - heaviness in the eyelids and swelling of the face, excessive sweating.

Complications during hypertension

Complications of hypertension:

• Hypertensive crisis,
• visual disability,
• Circulatory disorders in the brain.
• nephrosclerosis,
• subarachnoid hemorrhage,
• Dissecting aneurysm of the aorta,
• bradydia,
• Damage to target organs (kidneys, heart, brain, veins and arteries, vessels of the fundus of the eye),
• Hypertensive cardiomyopathy (HLH, left ventricular hypertension)
• Angiodystonia of the hypertonic type.

Hypertensive crisis

First you need to understand what a hypertensive crisis is. This term refers to a sharp and significant increase in blood pressure, which is accompanied by characteristic symptoms of the disease. In addition to hypertension, it can be caused by:

• Chronic and acute glomerulonephritis,
• Toxicosis in late pregnancy,
• renovascular Hypertension,
• benign brain tumors
• heavy metal poisoning,
• Renal insufficiency.

Crises can be caused by hormonal imbalance and sudden changes in the weather. One of the most common causes is trauma of a psycho-emotional nature. Symptoms: severe severe headache, nausea with the urge to vomit, dizziness, fainting, short-term blindness and other visual disturbances, weakness, mood swings, crying. Brain symptoms:

• vasospasm,
• Violation of the permeability of the vascular walls,
• Entry of blood plasma into the marrow, which leads to edema.

In the early stages of the disease, crises are mild and short-lived.

The danger of a crisis in the possible development:

• retinal detachment,
• race,
• Acute pulmonary edema
• cardiac asthma,
• myocardial infarction,
• Angina pectoris.

Complications of hypertension pose a serious threat to human life and require regular medical monitoring.

bradycardia

A common and dangerous complication of hypertension. It manifests depending on the form. The mild form may go unnoticed. Severe, frequent and prolonged dizziness with hypertension may indicate a pronounced form of the disease. In addition, the symptoms include: semi-fainting state and frequent fainting, sudden changes in pressure. The severe form is accompanied by fainting and short-term cardiac arrest. Treatment of bradycardia with hypertension can occur with homeopathic and medicinal remedies. Diuretics, alpha-blockers, nifedicipin are usually prescribed. From homeopathy, calendula, St. John's wort, strawberries, shakers are prescribed.

Complications include the following syndromes in hypertension:

• myocardial injury,
• kidney damage,
• vascular encephalopathy,
• High blood pressure syndrome.

Associated clinical conditions: ischemic stroke, CHF, coronary revascularization, renal failure, arteriopathy, papilledema.

Target organ damage

A heart

Most often, left ventricular hypertrophy develops. This happens because the heart muscle has to push blood into the deformed vessels with great effort. Such work leads to thickening of the muscle wall and lack of blood circulation. This is dangerous with muscle tension and cardiac fatigue. Another pathology is a violation of the diastolic function of the lzh. The increasing fatigue of the heart muscle leads to a moment when it cannot take a relaxed position. The thickened wall cannot relax during the diastolic phase, when oxygen saturation normally occurs. All this leads to the third pathology - chronic insufficiency. It develops as a result of constant lack of oxygen. It is very difficult to treat the disease, and in combination with other pathologies, it leads to death.

ships

Arterial vessels in hypertension are in a state of constant narrowing due to contraction of the muscle layer. This leads to the fact that the vessels cease to relax, and muscle tissue is replaced by connective tissue. This is called vascular remodeling. Vision loss, peripheral atherosclerosis of the extremities and other diseases are associated with this complex and irreversible consequence.

Brain

Hemorrhage causes nearly 25% of all strokes. And hypertension is the main cause of hemorrhages, which have a high percentage of deaths. Insufficient blood supply to the brain leads to ischemic stroke. This complication represents more than 70% of cases. It is caused by narrowing of the cerebral arteries or blockage of the channel by a thrombus. Another pathology is hypertensive encephalopathy. This is an emergency condition, accompanied by severe headache, high blood pressure, neurological symptoms. If you have hypertension, there is a possibility of developing cognitive impairment and dementia. These are changes in the subcortical substance and brain atrophy, which are responsible for violations of thought processes.

kidneys

One of the most common complications is microalbuminuria. The first sign of kidney damage and the development of kidney failure. Chronic renal failure is characterized by the loss of the kidneys' ability to remove metabolic products from the blood.

Diagnosis of the disease

Effective treatment of hypertension is possible only with early diagnosis and compliance with all rules and recommendations. High blood pressure is not always an indicator of hypertension, it can be situational. And with repeated visits to the doctor it is not detected. A single pressure measurement may not reveal the disease: with recurrent symptoms, it is necessary to measure blood pressure in dynamics. After making a diagnosis, doctors perform a differential diagnosis to determine the symptomatic form of the disease.

pressure measurement

To determine the degree and presence of the disease, dynamic pressure measurement is used. It is carried out in the following way: the environment must be comfortable and calm. Measurements begin no earlier than ten minutes after the start of the patient's admission. One hour before the visit, smoking, taking any food and strong drinks (tea, coffee, alcohol), any physical activity, the use of eye drops or nasal drops is excluded. During the first treatment, blood pressure readings are taken from both of the patient's hands, with a second measurement after 2 minutes.

With a difference in readings of more than 5 mm Hg. continue measurements on the arm with high pressure.

Treatment of hypertension

How to treat hypertension depends on the stage of the disease, complications, age and many other parameters. Medical treatment options are selected by the treating physician. The desire to fight the disease alone can have disastrous consequences. Modern treatment of hypertension begins with non-pharmacological methods that increase the effectiveness of drugs several times. You should start by establishing a daily routine, eliminating any stress, do not forget about exercise and long walks. An important point in how to deal with hypertension is diet. The patient should refuse or significantly reduce salt intake, drink less, completely eliminate alcoholic beverages and coffee. If you follow all the recommendations, you can avoid drug treatment of the disease.

In treatment, it is important not only how to deal with hypertension, but also how to eliminate the causes of high blood pressure.

Medicines are usually used to treat:

• diuretic,
• inhibitors
• Type 2 receptor antagonists
• Calcium channel blockers.

Blood Pressure Medications - Prescription Only

homeopathic treatment

Considering the question of how to get rid of hypertension, it is worth paying attention to homeopathic remedies. They are usually recommended when the target organs are already affected. Homeopathy for hypertension has an important advantage - a mild effect. The drugs have no contraindications or side effects. The disadvantage is that treatment with homeopathic remedies is quite slow. When choosing this method, consider:

• Homeopathic medicines are prescribed simultaneously with medicines,
• Combining medication and a healthy lifestyle
• With a medium degree of risk, this type is usually the only one possible.

Hospital treatment of hypertension

Hospital treatment is usually entered with a complicated hypertensive crisis:

• acute hypertensive encephalopathy,
• cardiac asthma,
• pulmonary edema,
• Acute coronary syndrome (unstable angina and myocardial infarction),
• aortic aneurysm,
• severe arterial bleeding
• Eclampsia.

Upon admission, the doctors of the clinic begin to carry out the main diagnostic actions:

• Every 15 minutes measurement of blood pressure dynamics,
• electrocardiograph,
• General analysis of blood and urine,
• echocardiography,
• Biochemical analysis for the detection of potassium, sodium, urea, calcium, creatinine, fibrinogen, coagulogram,
• Ophthalmoscopy.

In addition, the patient should be prescribed an appointment with a neurologist, Reberg's test and rheoencephalography, as well as determine the type of cerebral hemodynamics. While in the hospital, hospital treatment depends on the presence of complications, the severity of the attack, and other illnesses. First aid is aimed at reducing the activity of the left ventricle of the heart and eliminating symptoms such as:

• peripheral vasoconstriction,
• cerebral ischemia,
• Heart failure.

Of great importance in the treatment of a complicated attack is the introduction of antihypertensive drugs, hospitalization in the ICU and regular monitoring of blood pressure.

Non-pharmacological treatment of a hypertensive state includes increased immunity, body cleansing, massage, gymnastics and diet. It is important to follow the instructions of doctors and not to violate the established regimen.

How to live with hypertension

How long people with hypertension live is an important question for those who have been diagnosed. The consequences of the disease depend on the stage and nature of its course. The severe form, vascular damage, the third stage of the disease and the alteration of the target organs worsen the prognosis. Premature death occurs from heart attacks and strokes, acute heart failure. Unfavorable prognosis for those who became ill at an early age.

The life expectancy of hypertensive patients depends not only on the correct taking of medications and regular visits to the doctor, but also on personal attitude and compliance with the basic rules. These include:

• psychological climate,
• Diet,
• Physical exercise,
• No bad habits.

Another important condition is to understand what kind of disease it is, how it develops and what consequences it has on the whole body. To understand the features of the course of the disease, it is not necessary to have a medical education. There are many good books and manuals written for ordinary people. One of them is "Propaedeutics of internal diseases" by A. Yakovlev. The book briefly and clearly describes the main provisions on hypertension, as well as the most popular treatment regimens for hypertension.

psychological climate

After realizing how to treat hypertension and choosing a method of treatment, you need to proceed to an equally important topic - a healthy lifestyle. It is impossible when working a night shift, frequent fights, constant and long-distance business trips, strong emotional stress, negative emotions, fears, anger. All these conditions are accompanied by the production of adrenaline in large quantities, which leads to disruption of the circulatory and nervous systems. It is important to control your emotions, think more positively and exclude any sources of stress from your environment. Herbal teas, meditations, walks, doing what you love will help you in this.

Creating the most comfortable conditions around him, a person increases the chances of his recovery.

Diet

Overweight and hypertension are incompatible. Even if there are no extra pounds, the treatment begins with the correction of nutrition. In the initial stages, this is enough to control the pressure and prevent its increase. There are several ways to lose weight with hypertension. The main one is caloric restriction. This can be achieved by eliminating or reducing the daily diet of sweet and fatty foods, flour products. A weight loss diet should not be confused with fasting: it is prohibited for hypertensive patients. To lose weight and normalize blood pressure, you also need to control the amount of animal fats in food. It is necessary to exclude high-cholesterol foods as much as possible, as well as switch to low-fat varieties of fish, fruits and vegetables, and natural vegetable oils. It is worth completely abandoning sausages, lard, fried meatballs and fatty meats, butter and fatty cheeses.

Contraindications for hypertension: any drinks and foods that excite the nervous system. These include not only tea, coffee and alcohol, but also carbonated drinks, hot spices, fragrant spices.

It is important to include foods rich in potassium and magnesium in your diet. These elements have a good effect on the heart muscle, strengthen the walls of blood vessels and the nervous system. A large amount of potassium is found in:

• prunes,
• apricots,
• cabbage,
• pumpkin,
• bananas

Rich in magnesium:

• Buckwheat grains, oats and millet,
• Carrot,
• Beet,
• black currant,
• Parsley and lettuce leaves
• walnuts

An important rule: these products should not be combined with milk. Calcium negatively affects the digestibility of elements.

Physical exercise

The complications of arterial hypertension and the disease itself do not force the patient to abandon any activity. Gymnastics, simple exercises, yoga or long walks, swimming are indicated for hypertensive patients. Movement not only carries a load of positive emotions, but also helps fight excess weight.

You should start with the simplest workouts, gradually increasing the time and complexity of the exercises. This also applies to swimming and walking.

Rehabilitation for hypertension of the third stage, as well as with such complications as hypertensive stroke, coronary heart disease, angina pectoris, should be carried out only under the supervision of doctors. Usually, for rehabilitation, patients are sent to special resorts, to sanatorium treatment. Which includes a full range of measures: proper nutrition, physical activity, medication.