Suggest Treatment For Persistent Headaches And Variations In BP

Posted on Mon, 24 Apr 2017

Question: My blood pressure has always been about 130/75. I'm 59, fit, don't smoke or drink. Then about 2 weeks ago I started getting headaches every day and decided to have my BP checked. It was at about 170/90 and stayed about there until I went on medication about a week later. My headaches disappeared. However I'm concerned as to why out of the blue my BP went up by 40 points. What can be the causes and what tests should I have?

Answered by Dr. Ilir Sharka (39 minutes later)

Brief Answer:
My answer as follows:

Detailed Answer:
Hello!

Welcome and thank you for asking on HCM!

Regarding your concern, I would explain that in this situation it is important exclude other secondary causes of secondary hypertension (like chronic inflammation, a lung disorder, liver or kidney dysfunction, blood electrolyte imbalance, diabetes, chronic anemia or thyroid dysfunction, etc.).

That is why I would recommend consulting with your attending physician for some tests:

- a resting ECG
- a chest X ray study
- complete blood count
- PCR and ESR for inflammation
- fasting glucose and HbA1C for diabetes
- thyroid hormone levels
- kidney and liver function tests
- cortisol and aldosteroneplasma levels for adrenal gland dysfunction
- blood electrolytes
- urine analysis.

Meanwhile, I would also recommend some lifestyle modifications which can help to lower naturally your blood pressure values:
-reduce salt and caffeine intake
-lose some weight if your are overweight
-try to perform a lot of physical activity (walking, aerobics, recreational sports).

Hope to have been helpful!

Kind regards,

Dr. Iliri

Note: For further queries related to coronary artery disease and prevention, click here.

Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar