High Blood Pressure

Synthetic pot use can mimic symptoms of prenatal disorder

(HealthDay)—Women who use synthetic marijuana during pregnancy can develop symptoms similar to those associated with eclampsia and preeclampsia, according to a new study.

Health created May 07, 2013 | popularity not rated yet | comments 0

Losing sleep? Scientists evaluate why

The issue of sleep deprivation has gone beyond the counting of sheep and into the scientific domain, as European researchers set up 'sleep labs' to study the biomedical and sociological factors keeping us ...

Health created May 03, 2013 | popularity 5 / 5 (3) | comments 0

Expanding Medicaid: Mental and financial health improve, but no improvement shown in physical health

New findings from the Oregon Health Insurance Experiment show that Medicaid coverage had no detectable effect on the prevalence of diabetes, high cholesterol, or high blood pressure, but substantially reduced depression, ...

Health created May 01, 2013 | popularity not rated yet | comments 0

Heart-healthy diet helps men lower bad cholesterol, regardless of weight loss

A heart-healthy diet helped men at high risk for heart disease reduce their bad cholesterol, regardless of whether they lost weight, in a study presented at the American Heart Association's Arteriosclerosis, Thrombosis and ...

Cardiology created May 01, 2013 | popularity 4 / 5 (1) | comments 0

Researchers' new diagnostic test can identify each person's optimal salt intake

(Medical Xpress)—Researchers at the University of Virginia School of Medicine have cut through conflicting advice about salt consumption by demonstrating that each person has a "personal salt index," an upper limit on daily ...

Health created May 01, 2013 | popularity 5 / 5 (1) | comments 0

New study confirms link between weight loss and blood pressure for individuals with specific genetic polymorphisms

Your genetic makeup can help determine how well your body will respond to weight loss efforts aimed at controlling high blood pressure, a new study confirms.

Genetics created Apr 30, 2013 | popularity 3 / 5 (1) | comments 0

Obesity in early 20s curbs chances of reaching middle age

Young men who are obese in their early 20s are significantly more likely to develop serious ill health by the time they reach middle age, or not even make it that far, suggests research published in the online journal BMJ Op ...

Overweight and Obesity created Apr 29, 2013 | popularity not rated yet | comments 0

Artificial kidney offers hope to patients tethered to a dialysis machine

No matter what else is happening in his life, David Anderson knows he cannot go far from the dialysis machine that sustains him.

Diseases, Conditions, Syndromes created Apr 29, 2013 | popularity not rated yet | comments 0

AMA reveals first step toward improving health outcomes

(HealthDay)—The American Medical Association (AMA) has announced the first stage of its improving health outcomes initiative, which aims to optimize the health of the nation with a focus on preventing cardiovascular ...

Diabetes created Apr 24, 2013 | popularity not rated yet | comments 0

Study finds physicians less likely to 'bond' with overweight patients

In a small study of 39 primary care doctors and 208 of their patients, Johns Hopkins researchers have found that physicians built much less of an emotional rapport with their overweight and obese patients than with their ...

Overweight and Obesity created Apr 22, 2013 | popularity 5 / 5 (2) | comments 1

Blood pressure out of control at safety-net clinics

Federally funded safety-net clinics for the uninsured lag behind other health care providers in controlling blood pressure among the low-income patients who rely on them for care, a new Michigan State University analysis ...

Health created Apr 17, 2013 | popularity not rated yet | comments 0

Hair analysis reveals elevated stress hormone levels raise cardiovascular risk

–Hair strands contain valuable information about senior citizens' stress levels that can be used to determine an individual's cardiovascular disease risk, according to a recent study accepted for publication in The Endocrine ...

Cardiology created Apr 17, 2013 | popularity 5 / 5 (1) | comments 0

Drinking cup of beetroot juice daily may help lower blood pressure

A cup of beetroot juice a day may help reduce your blood pressure, according to a small study in the American Heart Association journal Hypertension.

Health created Apr 15, 2013 | popularity 5 / 5 (1) | comments 0

Increased risk of cardiovascular disease for pregnant women with high blood pressure

Women with high blood pressure during pregnancy have an increased risk of high blood pressure even 40 years after maternity, which leads in turn to an increased risk of cardiovascular disease. This has been demonstrated by ...

Cardiology created Apr 15, 2013 | popularity not rated yet | comments 0

Stenting blocked bowel arteries saves lives

Stenting reopens completely blocked bowel arteries, preventing damage and even death from a condition that causes individuals severe pain and leads to excessive weight loss, notes research being presented at the Society of ...

Cardiology created Apr 14, 2013 | popularity 5 / 5 (1) | comments 0


Hypertension (HTN) or high blood pressure, sometimes arterial hypertension, is a chronic medical condition in which the blood pressure in the arteries is elevated. This requires the heart to work harder than normal to circulate blood through the blood vessels. Blood pressure involves two measurements, systolic and diastolic, which depend on whether the heart muscle is contracting (systole) or relaxed (diastole) between beats. Normal blood pressure is at or below 120/80 mmHg. High blood pressure is said to be present if it is persistently at or above 140/90 mmHg.

Hypertension is classified as either primary (essential) hypertension or secondary hypertension; about 90–95% of cases are categorized as "primary hypertension" which means high blood pressure with no obvious underlying medical cause. The remaining 5–10% of cases (secondary hypertension) are caused by other conditions that affect the kidneys, arteries, heart or endocrine system.

Hypertension is a major risk factor for stroke, myocardial infarction (heart attacks), heart failure, aneurysms of the arteries (e.g. aortic aneurysm), peripheral arterial disease and is a cause of chronic kidney disease. Even moderate elevation of arterial blood pressure is associated with a shortened life expectancy. Dietary and lifestyle changes can improve blood pressure control and decrease the risk of associated health complications, although drug treatment is often necessary in patients for whom lifestyle changes prove ineffective or insufficient.

This text uses material from Wikipedia and is available under the GNU Free Documentation License.

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