A comparison is often made between the bicycle tires and the blood vessels to explain how blood pressure is in the body. Indeed, the air exerts pressure against the inner wall of a bicycle tire maintained inflated. Depending on the volume of air in the tire, it is full and ready to roll, and it is soft and appears "flat". Blood pressure is the force that the blood exerts against the inner walls of blood vessels, as the air in the tire of a bicycle.
To measure the blood pressure of a person, doctors take multiple readings with a blood pressure cuff (also called a sphygmomanometer). Blood pressure is expressed by two numbers the one corresponding to the maximum value and the other to the minimum value (for ex. 120 is the "upper figure" and the 70 "lower figure").
These two figures represent the pressure inside blood vessels when the heart contracts (systolic pressure - the highest number) and when the heart is at rest (diastolic pressure - the lower number).
Blood pressure is measured in millimeters of mercury (mmHg). Blood pressure fluctuates throughout the day. It varies depending on the time of day and according to the activities of a person and it can get in a stressful situation.
What is high blood pressure?
When the blood exerts too much pressure on the inner walls of blood vessels (arteries and veins), hypertension appears. Although it contains the root word "tension", it is not a condition exclusive to people who have an anxious temperament, in addition, a prolonged period of high tension can affect the measurement of blood pressure.
It is estimated that a person has high blood pressure when she gets repeatedly measurement of systolic blood pressure less than 140 mmHg or diastolic blood pressure measurement greater than or equal to 90 mmHg. The numbers of optimal blood pressure are below 120 mmHg for systolic and below 80 mmHg for diastolic blood pressure.
About 42% of people with hypertension in Canada do not realize their condition. A lot of people discover that they have high blood pressure during a routine annual health examination.
Causes and categories
In 95% of cases, the exact cause of high blood pressure and doctors call hypertension or essential hypertension primitive. Lifestyle, environment and family history all play a role in these cases.
In other cases, ie 5%, the cause may be related to a medical condition. It is then of secondary hypertension. In reviewing the medical and family history, it is often possible to identify underlying medical problem led to high blood pressure. Among the medical conditions that may increase a person's blood pressure include:
- a previous heart attack,
- stroke in history,
- hormonal disorders,
- kidney disease.
- In case of secondary hypertension, the underlying condition is treated first.
The medical classes hypertension in categories derived from the reading of the blood pressure:
- prehypertension which is characterized by measuring the systolic blood pressure of between 120 and 139 while the diastolic blood pressure between 80 and 89;
- Stage 1 when the measurement of the systolic blood pressure from 140 to 159 and acknowledge the diastolic blood pressure from 90 to 99;
- stage 2 is reached when a measurement of the systolic blood pressure is greater than or equal to 160 and that of the diastolic blood pressure is greater than or equal to 100.
- A diagnosis can be made if the number that corresponds to the systolic or diastolic blood pressure did not fall within the normal range.
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