High Blood Pressure: Causes, Symptoms and Treatments

Question 1 

Blood pressure is influenced by the amount of blood that the heart is capable of pumping to the body per minute, blood viscosity, vessel lining elasticity, and also blood volume that circulates the body. However, Hypertension has continued to be an ongoing crisis in the medical sector. Based on a pathophysiology view, Hypertension is categorized in two, primary and Secondary Hypertension. Secondary Hypertension is a case found in individuals that have high blood pressure resulting from an underlying condition (Manenga et al., 2016) . The contributing factors that lead to this include kidney problems, illegal drugs such as amphetamines, and also thyroid problems. However, in the elderly, they are usually at risk due to loss of elasticity in blood vessels, and as a result, an elderly person who smokes can easily get Hypertension (Writes, 2015) . 

Question 2 

Cardiac output is affected by four major conditions. This include Heart rate, which is usually a simple mode of determining cardiac output. For instance, when a heartbeat is fast, there will be a high flow of blood at that time. Cardiac output may be impaired in this case where the heart will tire quickly when the heartbeat is fast, thus resulting in Acute supraventricular (Vincent, 2008) . When the heartbeat is slow, it will lead to bradyarrhythmia. On the other hand, there is the contractile nature of the heart muscles. This will lead to an increase in cardiac output. Besides, weakened contractility can lead to reduction in cardiac output, and thus, blood pressure will be lowered. Preload is the amount that a ventricle stretches with at the diastole end. Preload is achieved at the point when cardiac output can no longer increase. This condition can result in atrial fibrillation. Lastly, afterload is the force that ventricles must counteract to release blood. When afterload reduces, cardiac output will increase in cases where contractility has been impaired. 

Question 3 

High blood pressure usually makes one’s heart work more than the usual rate. In this case, the woman has lower extremity edema, which at times may be caused by medications intended for blood pressure. For instance, calcium channel blockers may widen blood vessels, thus resulting to flow of more blood. In this case, some fluids may leak and will, therefore, be collected around her ankles, thus worsening the condition of swollen ankles (Blood Pressure, 2008). As a result, this will make blood pressure control since the doctors will also be evaluating the risk of the other disease. 

References 

Blood Pressure, U. K. (2008). Diuretics—blood pressure medication.  Blood Pressure UK [online] . 

Manenga, A., Sandrine, E., Nkoke, C., Boombi, J., Musa, A. J., Mfeukeu, L. K., & Kingue, S. (2016). Factors associated with blood pressure control amongst adults with Hypertension in Yaounde, Cameroon: a cross-sectional study. Cardiovascular Diagnosis & Therapy , 439-445. 

Vincent, J.-L. (2008). Understanding cardiac output. Critical Care . Retrieved from https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2575587/ 

Writes, S. (2015). Common Causes of Hypertension in Senior Adults. Health Science Journal . Retrieved from https://www.hsj.gr/medicine/common-causes-of-hypertension-in-senior-adults.php?aid=20259