High Blood Pressure in the Elderly

High blood pressure in the elderly can be a symptom or sign of more sinister problems which if diagnosed in the early stages can be controlled, treated or cured. When examining the health of elderly people their blood pressure is considered an important indication of their well being for making an effective clinical diagnosis. It is recommended that the blood pressure of elderly people should be measured regularly. Elderly people often suffer from multiple disorders therefore an assessment of their blood pressure is very necessary.

Medical examinations of the elderly often reveal an elevation in their blood pressure because older people are more prone to renal disorders and other illnesses. High blood pressure or hypertension in elderly people arises when they have renal diseases coupled with the occurrence of unbalanced glucose levels in their blood.

In certain situations the heart has been known to take compensatory action as a result of raised blood pressure in elderly people. This type of reaction happens as a retaliatory effort by the body to make up for the loss or reduction encountered in their blood pressure levels.

High blood pressure may mean a lifestyle change

It is not uncommon for high blood pressure in elderly people to be the result of a sedentary life style together with a lifetime's fatty diet. This suggests that the person is overweight and if so then losing the excess weight should be one of their first goals. On occasion just losing weight may be the only treatment anyone needs to reduce their blood pressure and can prevent the person having to commence anti-hypertensive drug therapy.

This does not mean a diet and strenuous exercise. The elderly person should perform mild to moderate exercise. This could include walking, some swimming if possible and other forms of mild exercise.

A lowered blood pressure in elderly people may lead to transient unconsciousness along with any other clinical problems such as hypoglycemia like conditions.

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Following a careful diagnosis, high blood pressure in elderly people should be treated immediately with anti-hypertensive drugs if appropriate and their blood pressure should then be checked on a regular basis.

It's important to note that some hypertensive drugs may have an adverse affect on prescription medications the patient is already taking. This may be due to their age and other illnesses,

All prescriptions and any over the counter medicines should be monitored carefully to ensure optimum drug therapy is being given for all illnesses the elderly person may be suffering from.

Some body organs in elderly people become weakened as a matter of course due to age related changes and should be monitored carefully.

Further, treatment of high blood pressure in elderly people needs to be undertaken in a very careful manner because the elevated blood pressure in elderly people may also limit the functions of other body organs.

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Research material about High Blood Pressure in the Elderly provided by K. Standerline, State Registered Nurse. UK

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