Understanding Blood Pressure Fluctuations and Its Normal Range - Essay Sample

Introduction

The blood pressure of a person fluctuates throughout the day. Doctors usually read both blood pressure of arteries when heart contracts (systolic blood pressure) and the pressure of blood in arteries when the heart relaxes (Daskalopoulou, Rabi, Zarnke, Dasgupta, Nerenberg, Cloutier & McKay, 2015). For an average person, systolic blood pressure should be below 120 mmHg, and diastolic pressure should be below 80mmHg (Kaplan, 2010). Therefore, a blood pressure reading of 160/110 mmHg is a cause of concern. However, to diagnose Herb with hypertension, I would consider reading his blood pressure for a second time. is because one high blood pressure reading cannot confirm if Herb has hypertension as his blood pressure may be due to emotional or physical stress (Rose-Jones & V Mclaughlin, 2015). To diagnose him with hypertension, I will ask him to pay two more visits to the hospital.

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Hypertension is a severe chronic condition that has a high mortality rate worldwide. Studies have shown that poor communication skills of physicians and doctors are a barrier to the treatment of patients with hypertension (Omboni, Aristizabal, De, Dolan, Head, Kahan & Narkiewicz, 2016). The communication skills I would use to counsel Herb include showing him respect, making him ease by discussing general topics, and giving him ample time to respond to my questions as well as explain his situation. To be able to assist Herb effectively, I should understand what causes high blood pressure and also how the condition can be managed. Smoking and obesity are the leading causes of hypertension, and therefore, I would advise Herb to quit smoking and also follow a healthy diet. Additionally, I would recommend him to exercise regularly and avoid table salt, taking alcohol, and leading a sedentary lifestyle for him to fight the chronic condition if at all he will be confirmed with the state.

The four kinds of hypertension, according to Delmar text, include essential, secondary, isolated systolic, and malignant hypertension. Essential hypertension is hypertension that has no cause. Its characteristics include frequent headaches, nose bleeding, dizziness, and tiredness. Secondary hypertension is hypertension that has a cause like abnormalities in the arteries. The third type of hypertension is isolated systolic hypertension. It is hypertension that is recorded in two numbers; when the heart contract and when it relaxes (Tikkanen, Narko, Zeller, Green, Salsali, Broedl & Woerle, 2015). A person with blood pressure below 120/80 is considered normal. Malignant hypertension occurs when blood pressure is extremely high. It is common in young adults and pregnant women. Its characteristics include chest pain, blurred vision, headaches, confusion, and numbness in legs and arms.

References

Daskalopoulou, S. S., Rabi, D. M., Zarnke, K. B., Dasgupta, K., Nerenberg, K., Cloutier, L., ... & McKay, D. W. (2015). The 2015 Canadian Hypertension Education Program recommendations for blood pressure measurement, diagnosis, assessment of risk, prevention, and treatment of hypertension. Canadian Journal of Cardiology, 31(5), 549-568.

Kaplan, N. M. (2010). Kaplan's clinical hypertension. Lippincott Williams & Wilkins.

Omboni, S., Aristizabal, D., De la Sierra, A., Dolan, E., Head, G., Kahan, T., ... & Narkiewicz, K. (2016). Hypertension types defined by the clinic and ambulatory blood pressure in 14 143 patients referred to hypertension clinics worldwide. Data from the ARTEMIS study. Journal of hypertension, 34(11), 2187-2198.

Rose-Jones, L. J., & V Mclaughlin, V. (2015). Pulmonary hypertension: types and treatments. Current cardiology reviews, 11(1), 73-79.

Tikkanen, I., Narko, K., Zeller, C., Green, A., Salsali, A., Broedl, U. C., & Woerle, H. J. (2015). Empagliflozin reduces blood pressure in patients with type 2 diabetes and hypertension. Diabetes care, 38(3), 420-428.