Effects of blood pressure

 Effects of blood pressure on cardiovascular disease 

Blood pressure is the strongest or one of the strongest risk factors for almost different cardiovascular diseases, including coronary disease. The relationship between blood pressure and cardiovascular makes the distinction between high normal blood pressure and hypertension based on arbitrary cut-off values for blood pressures. 

 

The average body has 5 liters of blood circulating continuously through a network of arteries, veins, and capillaries. The heart is the miraculous machine that maintains circulation, contracting, and relaxing on average 70 to 80 times per minute pushing blood through 4 chambers that either receive from or discharge to a network of blood vessels. 

A pressure reading of 120/80 is considered normal whereas you are classed as pre-hypertensive in the range up to 139/89 and hypertensive with readings above that. The interesting thing is you don't know whether you have a problem with high blood pressure without being tested, there are no obvious symptoms and no strange feelings that something is not quite right. 

The damage can build over time: 

Damage to your arteries 

Healthy arteries are flexible, strong, and elastic. Their inner walls are smooth so that blood flows freely, supplying vital organs and tissues with nutrients and oxygen. 

Blood Pressure gradually increases the pressure of blood flowing through your arteries. As a result, you might have: 

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  Damaged and narrowed arteries. High blood pressure can damage the cells of your arteries. When fats from your diet enter to your bloodstream, they can collect in the damaged arteries. your artery walls become less elastic, limiting blood flow throughout your body. 

• Aneurysm. The constant pressure of blood flow through a weakened artery can cause a section of its wall to enlarge and form a bulge (aneurysm). It can potentially cause life-threatening internal bleeding. It can form in any artery, but they're most common in your body's largest artery (aorta). 

The excess amount of strain and resulting damage from high blood pressure causes the coronary arteries serving the heart to slowly become narrowed from a buildup of fat, cholesterol, and other substances that together are called plaque. This slow process is known as atherosclerosis. 

As coronary arteries harden with plaque, blood clots become more likely to form. When an artery becomes blocked due to a blood clot, the flow of blood through the heart muscle is interrupted, starving the muscle of oxygen and nutrients. The damage of the heart muscle that occurs, as a result, is called a heart attack (myocardial infarction). 

HBP can damage your health in many ways. It seriously hurt important organs like your heart, brain, kidneys, and eyes.

Damage to your heart 

High blood pressure causes many problems for your heart, including: 

• Coronary artery disease.  Damaged arteries by high blood pressure have trouble supplying blood to your heart. When blood can't flow freely to your heart, it causes chest pain (angina), irregular heart rhythms (arrhythmias), or a heart attack. 

• Enlarged left heart. High blood pressure causes your heart to work harder to pump blood to the rest of your body. This causes part of your heart to thicken. left ventricle’s thickness increases your risk of heart attack, heart failure and sudden cardiac death. 

• Heart failure. The strain on your heart caused by high blood pressure can cause the heart muscle to weaken and work less efficiently. Eventually, your overwhelmed heart begins to fail. Damage from heart attacks adds to this problem. 

Damage to your brain 

Your brain is dependent on a nourishing blood supply to work properly. But HBP can cause several problems, including: 

• Transient ischemic attack (TIA). Sometimes called a stroke, a TIA is a brief, temporary disruption of blood supply to your brain. Hardened arteries or blood clots caused by high blood pressure cause TIA. It is often a warning that you're at risk of a full-blown stroke. 

• Stroke. It occurs when part of your brain is deprived of oxygen and nutrients, causing brain cells to die. Blood vessels damaged by high blood pressure can narrow, leak. High blood pressure can also cause blood clots creation in the arteries leading to your brain, blocking blood flow and potentially causing a stroke. 

• Dementia. Narrowed or blocked arteries can decrease blood flow to the brain, leading to a certain type of dementia. A stroke that interrupts blood flow to the brain causes vascular dementia. 

• Mild cognitive impairment. It is a transition stage between the changes in understanding and memory that generally come with aging and the more-serious problems caused by dementia. Studies suggest that high blood pressure can lead to MCI.  

Damage to your kidneys 

Kidneys function to filter excess fluid and waste from your blood — a process that requires healthy blood vessels. This can damage the blood vessels and lead to your kidneys. 

Kidney problems caused by high blood pressure include: 

• Kidney scarring (glomerulosclerosis). 

•  This type of kidney damage occurs when tiny blood vessels within the kidney become scarred and unable to effectively filter fluid and waste from your blood. Glomerulosclerosis can lead to kidney failure. 

• Kidney failure. HBP is one of the most common causes of kidney failure. Blood vessels prevent kidneys from effectively filtering waste from your blood, allowing dangerous levels of fluid and waste to gather. You might ultimately require dialysis or kidney transplantation. 

Damage to your eyes  

High blood pressure can damage the tiny, blood vessels that supply blood to your eyes, causing: 

• Damage to your retina:  Damage to the -sensitive tissue at the back of your eye (retina) can lead to bleeding in the eye, blurred vision and complete loss of vision. You're at an even greater risk if you have diabetes in addition to HBP. 

• Fluid buildup under the retina: Choroidopathy can result in distorted vision and sometimes scarring that impairs vision. 

• Nerve damage. Blocked blood clots can damage the optic nerve, leading to bleeding within your eye or vision loss. 

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Damage to Coronary-Artery  – Arteriosclerosis:  

Atherosclerosis usually has no symptoms until the narrowed coronary arteries severely restrict blood flow to the guts. At now, you'll feel pain because not enough blood is reaching your heart, especially while you're exerting yourself or are under stress. 

Symptoms: 

Symptoms of disorder differ consistently with the sorts of the disease. But there are some symptoms that may require you to get checked for the disease. Patients with this disease feel pain within the chest, discomfort within the arms, shortness of breath, becoming pale, and getting fainting sessions. Women usually face problems like shortness of breath, nausea, pain in the back and jaw and vomiting. Apart from these symptoms like difficulty in seeing with one or both eyes, loss of balance, severe headache without any cause, numbness of leg most often on one part of body and difficulty walking or dizziness shows the presence of cardiovascular disease. If you discover any of those symptoms then as soon as possible contact your doctor and seek medicinal care. 

Prevention: 

Foods consisting of fish, almonds, green and leafy vegetables, fruits and garlic are very beneficial in decreasing the chances of risk for cardiovascular disease. Extra intake of salt is very harmful to patients with this disease. According to a survey people eating a lesser amount of sodium have a 25% reduced risk of this disease. 

There are some categories of exercises that assist in reducing the chances of chronic disease like cardiovascular disease. Aerobic exercises are very beneficial in this disease. It helps you in maintaining better weight and also control vital signs. 

Treatment: 

Treatment for various sorts of disorders depends upon the symptoms shown in patients. The most effective treatment for this disease always includes changes in lifestyle. However, in general, the treatment for Cardiovascular disease includes making changes to diet, increasing exercise, and often using medications to reduce blood cholesterol levels. Normally other treatments may include angioplasty and stenting for severe blockages. In most cases, open heart (bypass) surgery may even be required. 

Your doctor may prescribe drugs to reduce high blood pressure and the risk of Cardiovascular disease. 

Depending on your current condition, your cardiologist might suggest you surgery to reopen or repair damaged blood vessels. 

EECP Treatment is the best solution as :  

Enhanced external counterpulsation (EECP) maybe a non-invasive procedure during which a group of inflatable cuffs (similar to vital sign cuffs) mechanically compress the blood vessels in your lower limbs. This increases the blood flow and oxygen back to the heart, reducing the work that the heart has to do. It improves blood circulation and strengthens the cardiopulmonary system. EECP doesn't have the risks or recovery time related to surgery 

EECP is that the only non-invasive treatment for arteria coronaries disease, angina, and congestive coronary failure. This EECP therapy procedure reduces or eliminates angina, increases energy and helps patients return to a more active lifestyle. Enhanced external counterpulsation is employed to treat patients with: 

Angina:  lack of blood to the heart that causes severe chest pains 

Coronary artery disease 

High blood pressure 

Congestive heart failure 

Heart attack 

This procedure is particularly effective for those who: 

Have had coronary angioplasty, stents or arteria coronaria bypass graft surgery, but their heart condition symptoms have returned 

Are not candidates for surgery due to other medical conditions 

Do not want to undergo surgery 

Have diabetes 

Have small vessels (often women) 

Rely on medications 

Cardiovascular the disease is a serious health risk. People need tons of awareness because this disease takes tons of your time to develop and sometimes  silently develops in body. Prevention and knowledge about this CVD can save innumerable lives. 

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