What is Secondary Hypertension
Secondary hypertension is a type of high blood pressure that doesn’t
occur very often, only in about 10% of all the cases. The rest of
the cases of high blood pressure have an unknown cause and the condition is
commonly named primary or essential hypertension. In the secondary type, you are looking for
a known cause unlike with the primary type, which is a mystery.
Causes
Scientists and investigators know for a fact that there are many conditions
that can cause secondary hypertension. The consequence is a raised arterial
pressure due to :
Renal Artery Stenosis
This condition can cause narrowing of the vessel stenosis. The
reduced lumen diameter increases the pressure drop along the length of the
diseased artery, and this reduces the pressure at the afferent arteriole in the
kidney.
Chronic Renal Disease
Many experts and medical researches agree that when this
condition is present the kidneys don’t excrete the usual amount of sodium which
lead to salt retention and as a result it can turn into secondary type of hypertension.
Primary
Hyperaldosteronism
This condition causes an increment of the secretion of
aldosterone and it makes the body retain a large amount of sodium and water and
as a result, blood volume, and pressure both increase.
Stress
Believe it or not, stress can also make this appear by activating the sympathetic nervous system. So just take it easy and
let the situations in life unfold especially if you cannot control them.
Researchers of secondary hypertension praise the power of positive thinking.
Sleep Apnea
Many scientific studies show that if a person snores there is
a great chance they posses this medical condition that leads to secondary
high blood pressure. Generally people that are overweight develop this condition but
other factors such as airway obstruction can cause this as well fortunately
surgery can correct this problem.
Hypothyroidism
This is a thyroid hormone that is released in the body that
causes an increment in blood pressure.
Pheochromocytoma
The blood pressure can also increase because of the high
amounts of catecholamine that are produced by certain tumors in the adrenal
medulla area .
Preeclampsia
This condition generally occurs during the third trimester of
pregnancy, the blood volume increases and it result in hypertension.
Aortic Coarctation
This is a congenital condition that obstructs aortic outflow
leading to an increased blood pressure.
Treatment
Many studies of secondary type of this condition have demonstrated that
patients have a better chance of treating their condition by controlling or
eliminating the underlying disease or pathology, although it may still be
necessary to take anti-hypertensive drugs.
A very strict study and investigation of secondary
hypertension reveals both the underlying disorder that is causing the high blood
pressure and the condition itself. Remember that by assuming a positive
attitude toward every situation, it is like providing yourself medicine.
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