A healthy (normal) blood pressure reading varies with age, activity, altitude and from person to person. Bearing in mind these qualifications, values between 100/60 and 140/90 are generally considered normal. A single blood pressure reading, unless very high or very low, should not be considered abnormal. An average of several readings taken on different days is generally used.
Hypertension or high blood pressure, is a condition in which a person’s blood pressure is persistently above normal. Although blood pressure varies from person to person and from time to time, 140/90 or above is considered abnormal when measured while the person is at rest. Normal blood pressure is about 120/80.
High blood pressure, also called hypertension, is itself a major disorder that requires treatment. Untreated, this sustained rise in blood pressure can damage the heart, blood vessels and kidneys. Other serious disorders that cause blood pressure to rise well above the normal level include congestive heart failure and head injuries.
Hypotension or low blood pressure, is a condition in which the blood pressure is reduced or below normal. Hypotension is considered by many patients to be a disorder that can cause various symptoms, including depression, lethargy, and fatigue.
Conditions
What is Low Blood Pressure?
Blood pressure is the force exerted by circulating blood on the walls of blood vessels, and constitutes one of the principal vital signs of life, which also include heart beat, rate of breathing, and temperature. Blood pressure is generated by the heart pumping blood into the arteries and is regulated by the response by the arteries to the flow of blood.
An individual’s blood pressure is expressed as systolic/diastolic blood pressure, for example, 120/80. The systolic blood pressure (the top number) represents the pressure in the arteries as the muscle of the heart contracts and pumps blood into them. The diastolic blood pressure (the bottom number) represents the pressure in the arteries as the muscle of the heart relaxes after it contracts. Blood pressure always is higher when the heart is pumping (squeezing) than when it is relaxing.
Measurement of Blood Pressure
Blood pressure is usually measured by an instrument called a sphygmomanometer. To measure the pressure, an inflatable cuff or wide band is placed around the patient’s upper arm and a stethoscope applied to the artery just below the cuff. By listening for changes in the sound of the pulse, the individual measuring the blood pressure knows how much to inflate the cuff, in order to stop blood from flowing into the arteries of the arm. Air is slowly let out off the cuff until the blood begins flowing again. At this stage, the sphygmomanometer records what is called the systolic blood pressure. Additional air is let out of the cuff until the sounds become muffled. The instrument then indicates the diastolic pressure. The systolic pressure corresponds to the contraction of the heart muscle, and the diastolic pressure corresponds to a relaxation of the heart. The two pressures are expressed in the following way: systolic/diastolic–120/80.
Hypotension
Hypotension, or low blood pressure as it is essentially known as, is a very common condition. It is present in a lot of people without any tell tale symptoms and only gets discovered when a person starts to feels giddy as and when he tries to get out of bed or up from a chair suddenly.
Causes
Low blood pressure (hypo tension) can result from shock and some diseases. It can also cause fainting.
Conditions
Like hypertension (high blood pressure), slightly low blood pressure may be a particular person’s normal pressure. Provided there are no other symptoms and the individual feels well, the low blood pressure can be considered a chance variation from the average, probably associated with a prolonged life expectancy. But, if low blood pressure occurs in an individual whose blood pressure is normally higher, it may be caused by some recent illness. In this case, it should be only temporary and should improve spontaneously.
Disorders such as diabetes mellitus, tabes dorsalis and Parkinson’s disease may result in low blood pressure, more so on changing posture. This results from involvement of the nervous system which also affects the nervous supply to veins which do not contract effectively resulting in pooling of blood in the extremities. Patients who have had a heart attack also have low blood pressure.
Symptoms of Hypotension
Frequently, there are no symptoms and the condition is found at a routine physical examination. The person may feel dizzy from a sudden change in position, such as standing up quickly may cause fainting. Serious low blood pressure may bring on the symptoms of shock, pallor and a feeling of coldness.
Treatment of Hypotension
There is a spontaneous improvement in most individuals, although treatment of the cause helps the return to normal. Drug treatment that may cause the low blood pressure should, if possible, be discontinued. Patients with peripheral neuritis are more difficult to treat. An improvement may be made by an increase in blood volume achieved by additional salt in the diet and sometimes with corticosteroid drugs.
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