Hypertension: Difference between revisions

Revision as of 21:22, 30 April 2014

Editor-In-Chief: C. Michael Gibson, M.S., M.D. [1]

Overview

Hypertension is generally defined as an elevated systolic blood pressure (SBP) ≥ 140 mmHg and/or diastolic blood pressure (DBP) ≥ 90 mmHg. Hypertension can be chronic or acute. Chronic hypertension is in 95% of the cases primary and in 5 % secondary to other underlying causes. Hypertensive crisis is the acute elevation of blood pressure and it can be classified into hypertensive emergency or hypertensive urgency when end organ damage is present or absent respectively.

Classification

Chronic Hypertension

Chronic hypertension

Primary hypertension
(also known as essential hypertension)
(95% of the cases)

Secondary hypertension

(5% of the cases)

Hypertensive Crisis

Hypertensive crisis
Acute elevation of blood pressure
- Systolic blood pressure >180 mm Hg, or
- Diastolic blood pressure >120 mm Hg

Hypertensive emergency
Evidence of end organ damage

Hypertensive urgency
No evidence of end organ damage

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 ==Overview==
-Arterial blood pressure (BP) is a measure of the force exerted by the blood on the arterial walls. It is the function of both the cardiac output (CO) and the systemic vascular resistance (SVR). The maintenance of a normal blood pressure value is crucial to ensure appropriate blood circulation throughout the cardiovascular system. Arterial BP is considered one of the most important vital signs in the clinical setting.
+Hypertension is generally defined as an elevated systolic blood pressure (SBP) ≥ 140 mmHg and/or diastolic blood pressure (DBP) ≥ 90 mmHg.  Hypertension can be chronic or acute.  Chronic hypertension is in 95% of the cases primary and in 5 % secondary to other underlying causes.  Hypertensive crisis is the acute elevation of [[blood pressure]] and it can be classified into [[hypertensive emergency]] or [[hypertensive urgency]] when end organ damage is present or absent respectively.
-Hypertension (HTN) is generally defined as an elevated systolic blood pressure (SBP) ≥ 140 mmHg and/or diastolic blood pressure (DBP) ≥ 90 mmHg.
 ==Classification==