What are the symptoms of systemic hypertension?
High blood pressure usually causes no symptoms. • Even if high blood pressure does cause symptoms, the symptoms are usually mild and nonspecific (vague, or suggesting many different disorders). • Thus, high blood pressure often is labeled “the silent killer.” • People who have high blood pressure typically don’t know it until their blood pressure is measured. Sometimes people with high blood pressure have the following symptoms: • Headache • Dizziness • Blurred vision • Nausea People often do not seek medical care until they have symptoms arising from the organ damage caused by chronic (ongoing, long-term) high blood pressure. The following types of organ damage are commonly seen in chronic high blood pressure: • Heart attack • Heart failure • Stroke or “mini stroke” (transient ischemic attack, TIA) • Kidney failure • Eye damage with loss of vision • Peripheral arterial disease • Outpouchings of the aorta, called aneurysms About 1% of people with high blood pressure do not seek medical
