Disease of the month: Hypertension

Despite being one of the most common conditions in the country, high blood pressure has serious underwriting consequences. Fergus Bescoby explains.

Hypertension

Hypertension or high blood pressure, is a well known condition in today’s world and most people will know someone on treatment for this.

The number of people in the UK with high blood pressure continues to rise, and currently around 30% of all people in England are affected, but like many conditions of the 21st century, this is due mainly to regular screening and better general awareness.

It is far better to be aware of a condition and have it controlled than to be unaware and let it manifest into a much more serious condition.

The medical fraternity is getting better at discovering and treating people with hypertension, the result being that the level of undiagnosed and untreated high blood pressure in the UK is starting to fall.

Known as the ‘silent killer’, high blood pressure rarely has obvious symptoms and very often the only way of knowing there is a problem is by having your blood pressure measured.

This can often be found by chance, for example when having a general check up. The NHS recommends that adults have their blood pressure checked at least every five years.

What is hypertension?

Hypertension (HTN) or high blood pressure is a chronic cardiac medical condition in which the systemic arterial blood pressure is elevated.

It is the opposite of hypotension. Hypertension is classified as either primary (essential) hypertension or secondary hypertension.

Approximately 90% to 95% of cases are categorised as ‘primary hypertension’, which means high blood pressure with no obvious medical cause.

The remaining 5% to 10% of cases (secondary hypertension) are caused by other conditions that affect the kidneys, arteries, heart or endocrine system.

Persistent hypertension is one of the risk factors for stroke, myocardial infarction, heart failure and arterial aneurysm, and is a leading cause of chronic kidney failure.

Moderate elevation of arterial blood pressure leads to shortened life expectancy.

Dietary and lifestyle changes can improve blood pressure and control and decrease the risk of associated health complications, although drug treatment may prove necessary in patients for whom lifestyle changes prove ineffective or insufficient.

Blood pressure measures how strongly blood presses against the walls of your arteries (large blood vessels) as it is pumped around the body by the heart.

If this pressure is too high it puts a strain on the arteries and the heart, which makes it more likely that a heart attack, stroke or kidney disease will occur.