Heart Disease And Hypertension
by on Oct.21, 2010, under Uncategorized
Hypertensive heart disease is a late complication of high blood pressure or hypertension of the heart. Blood pressure should be checked regularly and frequent blood measurements should be performed for patients who have difficulty in controlling high blood pressure.
Hypertensive heart disease is generally a term used in heart diseases such as left ventricular hypertrophy (LVH), cardiac arrhythmias, coronary artery disease, and congestive heart failure (CFH).These diseases generally develop in response to chronically high blood pressure, but acute elevation of blood pressure can also lead to bringing out an underlying tendency to the symptoms connected with chronic hypertension.
High blood pressure increases the load of work the heart does and as time passes, this can cause to the thickening of the heart muscles and the symptoms of hypertensive heart disease. The heart’s constant pumping against elevated pressure in the blood vessels causes the left ventricle to become enlarged and thus the amount of blood pumped by the heart each minute called cardiac output, goes down. If this condition is left untreated, symptoms of congestive heart failure may develop.
The most common risk factor for heart disease and stroke is high blood pressure, as it can sometimes cause ischemic heart disease (a condition where there is decreased blood to the heart muscle resulting in anginal chest pain and heart attacks) which increases the supply of oxygen needed by the thicker heart muscle.
Hypertensive heart disease affects about seven out of one thousand people and is considered to be the leading cause of illness and death from hypertension. Symptoms of hypertensive heart disease include:
- Shortness of breath especially when physically active
- Rapid or irregular pulse
- Waking at night short for breath
- Cough which may produce blood-tinged mucus
- Fatigue, faintness, weakness
- Increased frequency of urination at night
- Swelling of the ankles or feet
- Sensation of feeling the heart beat or palpitations
The signs that would diagnose a person suffering from hypertensive heart disease can be found in physical examination. Many doctors will use an anatomical model to help educate the patient about their heart and the risks of hypertension. Results may indicate elevated blood pressure, enlargement of the heart, stethoscope examinations may reveal fluid on the lungs or abnormal heart sounds, and later in the history of the condition, signs of heart failure that includes pulmonary congestion.
The treatment of the heart disease will depend on which condition is present and will mainly be concentrated on reducing blood pressure and controlling the heart disease. Again, ask your doctor to help explain the situation visually with the help of a heart model or anatomy chart. Typical medications will include beta blockers, diuretics, potassium replacements, calcium channel blockers, ACE inhibitors, and direct vasodilators. The blood pressure should be checked regularly to monitor the condition and frequent blood measurements should be performed at home for patients who have difficulty in controlling high blood pressure.
