Blood Pressure

1. Blood Pressure

2. The Dangers of High Blood Pressure • Medical term = hypertension. • High BP= condition in which the pressure (tension) blood exerts on the walls of blood vessels goes up and stays high • Damages the blood vessels, the heart, and other organs. • High risk factor for coronary heart disease. • Highest risk factor for stroke )3rd leading cause of death in the U.S.) • Common cause of heart failure (leading cause of death in the U.S.) • Common cause of kidney disease.

3. Symptoms of High Blood Pressure • Usually no symptoms, many people don’t realize they have it. • High BP can only be detected with accurate, repeated measurements of a person’s BP • Can be treated safely and effectively, but only about one-quarter of people with high BP take necessary steps to keep BP within a normal range.

4. Potential Causes of High BP • Smoking • Being overweight or obese • Lack of physical activity • Too much salt in the diet • High alcohol consumption (>1-2 drinks/day) • Stress • Older age • Genetics • Family history of high blood pressure • Chronic kidney disease • Adrenal and thyroid disorders

5. You are at higher risk for high BP if you… • Have family members with high BP • smoke. • are African-Americans. • pregnant • take birth control pills. • over the age of 35. • are overweight or obese. • are not active. • drink alcohol excessively. • eat too many fatty and/or salty foods

6. Estimated to affect > 50 million Americans or about 1 in 4 adults • When BP is consistently high, the continuous increased force on blood vessel walls causes damage blood vessels and organs, including the heart, kidneys, eyes, and brain.

7. Cardiac Circulation • Coronary arteries deliver the blood that oxygenates and nourishes the myocardium • Cardiac veins drain blood from myocardium into coronary sinus which empties into the right atrium.

8. Disruptions of Cardiac Circulation • Angina pectoris: crushing chest pain due to myocardial oxygen deprivation • blood supply to myocardium becomes inadequate if heart rate is too rapid • If HR is rapid, the relaxation periods when blood flows into myocardial tissue are shortened • Atherosclerosis: plaque made of cholesterol and other cells build up in the walls of the coronary arteries • Myocardial infarcation: “heart attack”/ “coronary” • Blood vessels to the heart are blocked, preventing oxygen from getting cells causing damage or death of the heart muscle • Can result from restricted blood flow due to atherosclerosis (likely during exercise or physical strain) • Usually caused by a clot that blocks a coronary artery – often if the plaque build up tears, blood stick to it and from a thrombus (clot)

9. Symptoms of Myocardial Infarction • Major symptom = chest pain • Tight band around chest, bad indigestion, something heavy sitting on chest, squeezing or heavy pressure • Other symptoms include: • Anxiety, cough, fainting, light headedness, dizziness, nausea, vomiting, palpitations and sweating. • “Silent” heart attacks have no symptoms

10. Risk Factors for Heart Attack • Increasing age (over age 65) • Male gender • Diabetes • Family history of coronary artery disease (genetic or hereditary factors) • High blood pressure • Smoking • High fat diet • Unhealthy cholesterol levels • Chronic kidney disease

11. Heart Attack Treatments/Prevention • Angioplasty and Stent placement: • Open blocked vessel using balloon catheter/guidewire • Stent is a small, metal mesh tube that expands in artery to prevent it from re-closing • Thrombolytic therapy • “clot busting” – drugs to break up clot w/i first few hours of chest pain • By-pass/ “Open Heart Surgery” • Take vein or artery from elsewhere in the body and use it to bypass blocked artery • Additional medicines: • Nitroglycerin: helps reduce pain • Anti-platelet medicine: help prevent clot from forming (ex. Aspirin)