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Also known as hypertension, high blood pressure causes your heart to work harder to pump blood through your blood vessels and body. Over time, elevated blood pressure increases the risk for heart failure, chronic kidney disease, sleep apnea and other dangerous conditions.
“Hypertension is a leading cause of damage to the heart and the kidneys,” says Dr. Costantino Iadecola, director of the Feil Family Brain and Mind Research Institute, professor of neuroscience and Anne Parrish Titzell Professor of Neurology at Weill Cornell Medicine. “So, treating high blood pressure is a priority, no matter what.”
Your blood pressure consists of two numbers. The top number is called systolic blood pressure. It explains how hard blood presses against your blood vessels when your heart beats. The bottom number, your diastolic blood pressure, measures the pressure between heartbeats.
Healthy blood pressure is less than 120/80 mm Hg or below. Hypertension occurs when your blood pressure reaches 130/80 mm Hg or higher.
Though it’s often difficult to pinpoint the root cause of hypertension, your risk of high blood pressure increases with the following:
With secondary hypertension, high blood pressure comes as a complication of another health issue. According to the National Institutes of Health, these causes include:
The first step is understanding what’s causing high blood pressure, then your care team can work with you to make a management plan accordingly.
Treatment options to help reduce the pressure of blood flowing in your arteries include:
“Blood pressure monitoring and management is extremely important,” says Dr. Diane Liu, assistant professor of clinical pediatrics in the Division of Pediatric Nephrology at Weill Cornell Medicine. “Longstanding hypertension can cause injury to blood vessels, which affects basically every part of your body. Catching hypertension early and treating it effectively is really important for preventing negative long-term outcomes.”
Often referred to as the “silent killer” because it may show no symptoms, high blood pressure can lead to severe conditions. Fortunately, there are steps you can take to reduce your risk and achieve healthy blood pressure levels.
Weill Cornell Medicine physicians are eager and ready to help with high blood pressure causes and effects. Find a doctor today to get started.
