What is Hypotension?
Blood pressure is measured in millimeters of mercury (mmHg) and is displayed with two numbers, one over the other, as in 120/80. When blood is pumping through the arteries, the systolic pressure is the higher number, when the pressure is greatest on the walls of the arteries. The lower number is the diastolic pressure, which is the resting phase of the blood pumping cycle. Hypotension is the condition of having unusually low blood pressure on a regular or semi-regular basis. Normal blood pressure for the average adult is 120/80 mmHg. Hypotension involves blood pressure that is 90/60 or lower. Most of us are familiar with hypertension, also known as high blood pressure, which is a serious medical condition that causes damage over a long period of time. Yet, many people are unaware that hypotension can at times be just as problematic. In an otherwise healthy person, hypotension without any other symptoms usually does not necessitate treatment. Blood pressure can continually move up and d
Hypotension, or low blood pressure as it is essentially known as, is a very common condition. It is present in a lot of people without any tell tale symptoms and only gets discovered when a person starts to feels giddy as and when he tries to get out of bed or up from a chair suddenly. Causes Low blood pressure (hypo tension) can result from shock and some diseases. It can also cause fainting. Conditions Like hypertension (high blood pressure), slightly low blood pressure may be a particular person’s normal pressure. Provided there are no other symptoms and the individual feels well, the low blood pressure can be considered a chance variation from the average, probably associated with a prolonged life expectancy. But, if low blood pressure occurs in an individual whose blood pressure is normally higher, it may be caused by some recent illness. In this case, it should be only temporary and should improve spontaneously. Disorders such as diabetes mellitus, tabes dorsalis and Parkinson’s
Hypotension is a state of abnormally low blood pressure. Hypotension by itself is not a disease, it is a physiological condition. There is a sympathetic nervous system that regulates the blood pressure level in human body and its effect is balanced by the autonomic nervous system. Any change in the balance between the two works as the physiological cause of hypotension. The obvious cause of abnormally low blood pressure is the decreased blood volume. The decrease in the blood volume may occur due to loss of blood, any kind of hemorrhage, lack of fluid in the body or starvation. Some medications too are responsible for hypotension. Loss of blood ultimately results in decrease in the cardiac output thus leading to hypotension. Beta blockers could be the other possible reason for abnormal low blood pressure level because they make the heart rate slower and reduce the ability of the heart muscles to pump blood. Hypotension is of many types such as orthostatic, neurocardiogenic and post pra
Hypotension (HI-po-TEN-shun) is low blood pressure. Blood pressure is the force of blood pushing against the walls of the arteries as the heart pumps out blood. Blood pressure is measured as systolic (sis-TOL-ik) and diastolic (di-a-STOL-ik) pressures. Systolic blood pressure is the pressure when the heart beats while pumping blood. Diastolic blood pressure is the pressure when the heart is at rest between beats. You will most often see blood pressure numbers written with the systolic number above or before the diastolic, such as 120/80 mmHg. (The mmHg is millimeters of mercury-the units used to measure blood pressure.) Normal blood pressure in adults is lower than 120/80 mmHg. Hypotension is blood pressure that’s lower than 90/60 mmHg.
