What are the typical symptoms of high blood pressure?

High blood pressure is a risk for the development of complications. These arise from a long-term unobserved course.

The most serious examples are heart attack or stroke, in the form of bleeding in the brain.

These are just two examples that occur in the case of neglected, untreated or improperly treated high blood pressure.

It happens that the consequences of high blood pressure erupt suddenly, without prior warning. Symptoms vary from case to case.

Someone is sensitive to weather changes, another person experiences large fluctuations in blood pressure during the day, depending on physical or mental condition and exertion.

High blood pressure may be a consequence of another disease. Its changes in such a case may occur when the primary provoking cause worsens.

Hypertension and its values

Repetition is the mother of wisdom, so let's repeat a few things about blood pressure. Blood pressure is made up of two values, expressed in millimeters of the mercury column.

These values are the systolic blood pressure and the diastolic blood pressure. Systolic blood pressure occurs when the left ventricle of the heart contracts. Diastolic pressure occurs when the heart relaxes.

The first value before the slash belongs to systolic blood pressure and the value after it belongs to diastolic blood pressure.

Blood pressure can be low, normal or high. This rough division still has a separate division within each unit.

For a detailed table of blood pressure values, see the magazine's article Summary table: what are the values of low, normal and high blood pressure?

This division is important for several reasons. In the case of hypertension, the intensity of symptoms can escalate according to the actual value.

Blood pressure is a dynamic variable that changes throughout the day due to a number of internal and external factors.

And if the body is not able to respond adequately to changes in blood pressure, then it causes it to decrease or increase. Which can ultimately cause problems.

For a quick overview, here is a table with values from normal blood pressure to high blood pressure.

Table with blood pressure values normal and high blood pressure

If the values are in a range of values, for example 150/80, in which case the blood pressure is classified in the group with the higher value. In this case (150/80) it would be grade I hypertension.

Do you know the typical symptoms of hypertension?

Hypertension is dangerous in that it is often asymptomatic and hidden in the early stages. During this period, it may not manifest itself with externally visible problems, but it does have a negative effect on the internal organs.

The eyes, kidneys, heart, brain and other organs are susceptible. You may find out that you have high blood pressure by accident.

When you have your blood pressure measured in your family circle or in your GP's surgery during a preventive check-up.

Even hypertension is a good example of why it is important to have annual preventive check-ups in preventing serious diseases and their complications.

Effective prevention is always better than treatment of a neglected disease, even if the neglect in this case often occurs unknowingly.

High blood pressure adversely affects all organs.

With long-term, gradually increasing blood pressure, the body gets used to the values and problems may not occur. Until the values are critical and often in numbers above 210/130 mmHg.

In this case, there is a high risk of developing complications such as myocardial infarction or stroke. These cases are professionally called accelerated hypertension or hypertensive crisis.

• Accelerated hypertension is characterized by a sudden and rapid rise in blood pressure values above normal. Its untreated causes damage to organs and tissues.
• Hypertensive crisis is an acute condition that threatens the health and life of the affected person. In addition to measured values above 210/130 mmHg, it threatens the central nervous and cardiovascular systems, as well as the kidneys.

Some people have recurrent problems when their blood pressure rises and know already without measurement that their blood pressure is rising. In some people it manifests itself in general or neurological problems, in others in cardiac problems.

Therefore, it is difficult to say on the basis of one symptom that at the moment it is hypertension.

However, there are a group of symptoms which, when they occur, suggest that there may be something wrong with the blood pressure.

These symptoms can occur in hypertension:

• headache (or otherwise described as sensations in the head)
• dizziness (may be in any position or only when changing position)
• tinnitus (or sounds other than whistling)
• visual disturbances (e.g. double, blurred, blurred vision)
• redness or pallor of the face
• hot flushes
• sleep disturbances
• sweating
• nosebleeds
• pain in the chest, around the heart (the pain may be of any nature, or a vague sensation, discomfort may be present)
• feeling of palpitations
• shortness of breath (dyspnoea, such as the feeling of not taking a good, full breath)
• fatigue and weakness
• a feeling of nausea, sometimes only as a heaviness on the stomach (in the upper abdomen, under the sternum), vomiting also occurs
• body tremors
• swelling of the lower limbs (initially around the ankles)

Do you know how to measure blood pressure correctly?

In addition to the problems that can occur with high blood pressure, it is important to know how to measure blood pressure correctly. Proof of hypertension (high blood pressure) by measuring it is an important indication for the person himself, but also for the doctor who treats hypertension.

It is advisable to write down the blood pressure measurements on a paper that you provide to the doctor at the examination.

It is not a problem to check blood pressure, as we have automatic digital blood pressure monitors nowadays. Their advantage is that they measure blood pressure automatically and the measured values are visible on an overview display.

It is convenient if the blood pressure monitor also measures your heart rate (pulse, heartbeat) or indicates its irregularity. A good quality device is preferable for measuring blood pressure.

When choosing a blood pressure monitor, quality should prevail over low price.

There are two types of commercially available digital blood pressure monitors:

• The first one is with a wrist cuff. Nowadays they are equally reliable, but the correct principles of placing the pressure gauge at the level of the heart are important in the measurement. Otherwise, deviations from the correct value are present. The pressure gauge is put on according to the instructions and the other principles in measuring blood pressure apply as below
• The second is the type with a cuff on the arm. This is found in two versions, namely as semi-automatic (with a cuff for bloating) and fully automatic.

In addition to a good quality blood pressure monitor, it is important that the blood pressure measurement is done within the guidelines of correct measurement. Otherwise, the measured value might not be meaningful.

It is important to pay attention to the details mentioned in the points:

• sitting or lying down (diastolic blood pressure is approximately 5 mmHg lower lying down than sitting up), lower limbs resting freely on the floor, not crossed. In some cases, measurements are taken after a change in standing position.
• quiet and calm in the room, reasonable temperature at the point where the blood pressure is measured
• the person should not talk while the blood pressure is being measured
• 30 minutes before the measurement do not drink coffee or other stimulating drinks, do not smoke
• rest for two hours after hard work
• not to be stressed before the measurement
• 5 minutes before the measurement, sit or lie still
• measurement with an empty bladder
• the final value is the average of 2-3 measurements with 2 minute pauses (if the person suffers from a heart rhythm disorder, repeat the measurement 5 times and the average will be the final value)
• measurements on the arm, shoulder, with the elbow resting on the pad
• the cuff of the pressure gauge should be the correct size and should be at heart level, 1-3 cm above the elbow socket
• the cuff should be neither too tight nor too loose
• the garment must be loose so as not to restrict blood flow to the limb
• blood pressure measurements can be taken on both upper limbs, but it is preferable to measure on the side where blood pressure values tend to be higher

Table of cuff sizes for blood pressure measurement, divided by arm size and by cuff width and length

Beware of morning hypertension!

Morning hypertension is difficult to diagnose as it appears within two hours of waking up. By the time a person sees a doctor, blood pressure has usually dropped and stabilised.

Therefore, checking blood pressure in the morning is important even in the home environment.

Nocturnal and morning hypertension increase the risk of complications.

Blood pressure with an occasional upward fluctuation in values, without difficulty and due to exertion or mental condition, is probably not a problem. But with repeated measurements of hypertension, a medical examination is needed.

Even in this case of morning hypertension, measure blood pressure within two hours of waking up on every day for one week and provide the recorded readings to the doctor.

Asymmetry of blood pressure in the extremities

Blood pressure is slightly different in the two upper limbs even under normal circumstances. But it may not be okay if these values exceed the figure of 20 mmHg.

For example, if you get a blood pressure reading of 120/80 on your right upper limb and a blood pressure reading of 150/90 on your left upper limb, a medical examination is recommended.