High Blood Pressure Treatment for Seniors: A Complete Guide

Understanding high blood pressure treatment seniors is important for seniors and their caregivers. blood pressure is a measurement of the force exerted against the walls of your arteries as your heart pumps blood to your body. These include heart disease, stroke, kidney failure, eye problems, and other health issues.

Blood pressure readings are given as two numbers. Hypertension is the medical term used to describe high blood pressure.

Untreated high blood pressure can lead to many medical problems. The bottom number is called diastolic blood pressure. The top number is called systolic blood pressure. (Note: The numbers below apply to people who are not taking medicines for blood pressure and who are not ill.)

– Normal blood pressure is when your blood pressure is lower than 120/80 mm Hg most of the time. For example, 120 over 80 (written as 120/80 mm Hg).

One or both of these numbers can be too high. – If the top blood pressure number is from 120 to 129 mm Hg, and the bottom blood pressure number is less than 80 mm Hg, it is called elevated blood pressure. – High blood pressure (hypertension) is when one or both of your blood pressure readings are 130/80 mm Hg or higher most of the time. This is because your blood vessels become stiffer as you age.

If you have heart or kidney problems, or you had a stroke, your health care provider may want your blood pressure to be even lower than that of people who do not have these conditions.

Causes

Many factors can affect blood pressure, including:

– The amount of water and salt you have in your body
– The condition of your kidneys, nervous system, or blood vessels
– Your hormone levels

You are more likely to be told your blood pressure is too high as you get older. High blood pressure increases your chance of having a stroke, heart attack, heart failure, kidney disease, or early death.

You have a higher risk for high blood pressure if you:

– Are African American
– Are obese
– Are often stressed or anxious
– Drink alcohol (more than 1 drink per day for women and more than 2 drinks per day for men)
– Eat too much salt
– Have a family history of high blood pressure
– Havediabetes
– Smoke or use tobacco

Most of the time, no cause of high blood pressure is found. When that happens, your blood pressure goes up. Secondary hypertension may be due to:

– Chronic kidney disease
– Disorders of the adrenal gland (such aspheochromocytomaorCushing syndrome)
– Hyperparathyroidism
– Pregnancy orpreeclampsia
– Medicines such as birth control pills, diet pills, some cold medicines, migraine medicines, corticosteroids, some antipsychotics, and certain medicines used to treat cancer
– Narrowed artery that supplies blood to the kidney (renal artery stenosis)
– Obstructive sleep apnea(OSA)

Symptoms

Most of the time, there are no symptoms. This is called essential hypertension.

High blood pressure that is caused by another medical condition or medicine you are taking is called secondary hypertension. Symptoms may include:

– Severeheadache
– Nausea and vomiting
– Confusion
– Vision changes
– Nosebleeds

Exams and Tests

Diagnosing and treating high blood pressure early can help prevent heart disease, stroke, eye problems, and chronic kidney disease.

Your provider willmeasure your blood pressureseveral times before diagnosing you with high blood pressure. For most people, high blood pressure is found when they visit their provider or have it checked elsewhere.

Because there are no symptoms, people can develop heart disease and kidney problems without knowing they have high blood pressure.

Malignant hypertensionis a dangerous form of very high blood pressure. For people age 40 or older, checking blood pressure once per year is recommended. It is normal for your blood pressure to be different based on the time of day.

All adults age 18 or older should have their blood pressure checked periodically. More frequent measurements may be needed for those with a history of high blood pressure readings or those with risk factors for high blood pressure. For some people age 18 to 39, checking less often may be fine. It should have a properly sized cuff and a digital readout. Check with your provider about what is best for you.

Blood pressure readings taken at home may be a better measure of your current blood pressure than those taken at your provider’s office.

– Make sure you get a good quality, well-fittinghome blood pressure monitor. – You should be relaxed and seated for five or more minutes prior to taking a reading. – Practice with your provider to make sure you are taking your blood pressure correctly.

Your provider will do a physical exam to look for signs of heart disease, damage to your eyes, and other changes in your body.

Tests may also be done to look for:

– High cholesterol level
– Heart disease, using tests such as anechocardiogramorelectrocardiogram
– Diabetes and kidney disease, using tests such as abasic metabolic panelblood test,urinalysis, or ultrasound of the kidneys

Treatment

The goal of treatment is to reduce your blood pressure so that you have a lower risk of health problems caused by high blood pressure. – Bring your home monitor to your appointments so your provider can make sure it is working correctly. – Medicines are rarely used at this stage. You and your provider should set a blood pressure goal for you.

Whenever thinking about the best treatment for high blood pressure, you and your provider must consider other factors such as:

– Your age
– The medicines you take
– Your risk of side effects from possible medicines
– Other medical conditions you may have, such as a history of heart disease, stroke, kidney problems, or diabetes

If the top blood pressure number is from 120 to 129 mm Hg, and the bottom blood pressure number is less than 80 mm Hg, you have what is called elevated blood pressure.

– Your provider will recommend lifestyle changes to bring your blood pressure down to a normal range. When thinking about the best treatment, you and your provider must consider:

– If you have no other diseases or risk factors for heart or kidney disease, your provider may recommend lifestyle changes and repeat the measurements after a few months.

If your blood pressure is 130/80 or higher, but lower than 140/90 mm Hg, you have Stage 1 high blood pressure. – If you have other diseases or risk factors for heart or kidney disease, your provider may be more likely to recommend medicines at the same time as lifestyle changes. – If your blood pressure remains 130/80 or above, but lower than 140/90 mm Hg, your provider may recommend medicines to treat high blood pressure. Your provider will most likely recommend medicines and lifestyle changes together.

Before making a final diagnosis of either elevated blood pressure or high blood pressure, your provider should ask you to have your blood pressure measured at home, at your pharmacy, or somewhere else besides their office or a hospital.

LIFESTYLE CHANGES

You can do many things to help control your blood pressure, including:

– Eat aheart-healthy diet, including potassium and fiber.

If your blood pressure is 140/90 mm Hg or higher, you have Stage 2 high blood pressure. – Get at least 150 minutes of moderate to vigorous aerobic exercise per week. – Drink plenty of water. – Limit how much alcohol you drink to 1 drink a day for women, and 2 drinks a day for men or less and consider quitting entirely. – If you smoke or use tobacco, quit. Aim for less than 1,500 mg per day of sodium. – Limit the amount of sodium (salt) you eat. Try to avoid things that cause you stress, and try meditation or yoga to de-stress. – Reduce stress.

Your provider can help you find programs for losing weight, stopping smoking, and exercising.

You can also get a referral to a dietitian, who can help you plan a diet that is healthy for you.

How low your blood pressure should be and at what level you need to start treatment is individualized, based on your age and any medical problems you have. – Stay at a healthy body weight. Medicines will likely be recommended if your blood pressure readings remain at or above these levels:

– Top number (systolic pressure) of 130 or more
– Bottom number (diastolic pressure) of 80 or more

If you have diabetes, heart problems, or a history of a stroke, medicines may be started at lower blood pressure reading. Ask your provider what your blood pressure goal is.

MEDICINES FOR HYPERTENSION

Most of the time, your provider will suggest you try lifestyle changes first and check your blood pressure two or more times. – It is very essential that you take the medicines prescribed to you. The most commonly used blood pressure targets for people with these medical problems are below 120 to 130/80 mm Hg.

There are many differentmedicines to treat high blood pressure.

– Often, a single blood pressure medicine may not be enough to control your blood pressure, and you may need to take two or more medicines.

Outlook (Prognosis)

Most of the time, high blood pressure can be controlled with medicine and lifestyle changes.

When blood pressure is not well-controlled, you are at risk for:

– Bleeding from the aorta, the large blood vessel that supplies blood to the abdomen, pelvis, and legs
– Chronic kidney disease
– Heart attack andheart failure – If you have side effects, tell your provider promptly so they can substitute a different medicine.