Headache can occur with a sharp increase in blood pressure, but most often it is an independent disease. Natalya Podgorodetskaya, a cardiologist at the Docmed clinic, told socialbites.ca.
“High blood pressure does no harm. For this reason, most people do not immediately consult a doctor for hypertension. Headaches can occur with a sharp and sudden increase in blood pressure to high figures. Most often, headaches are an independent disease. According to statistics, 70% of people in some population groups have “More than 100,000 people suffer from tension headaches, 7 percent suffer from medication overuse headaches; more than 20 percent are caused by migraines,” explained the doctor.
High blood pressure, although asymptomatic, shows its effect by damaging target organs: heart, kidneys, brain, eyes. Sustained high blood pressure makes it difficult for the heart to pump blood. To compensate, the organ thickens. This condition causes irregular heart rhythms, increasing the risk of heart attack, heart failure and sudden death. Hypertension also damages blood vessels, worsening atherosclerosis and reducing their elasticity. High blood pressure damages the kidneys and can cause kidney failure. And its effect on the penile artery can lead to erection problems. Women with hypertension may complain of lack of lubrication and decreased libido.
“With constant high pressure, the largest vessel, the aorta, experiences great stress and begins to expand in certain places, forming an aneurysm. Podgorodetskaya noted that there is a high risk of fatal bleeding and death if the aneurysm ruptures.
Hypertension also affects the brain, increasing the risk of transient ischemic attack (short-term blockage of blood flow to part of the brain) or stroke, reducing the speed of mental reactions and impairing memory. It can also cause visual impairment, including complete vision loss.
used to be a doctor saidA sudden increase in blood pressure can lead to the feeling of paralysis, he says.