Diagnosis of
High Blood Pressure / MENU / When to Call a Doctor
How To Treat High Blood Pressure
- The first line of treatment for essential hypertension involves adopting healthy lifestyle measures (see Prevention). Mild hypertension may respond positively to these measures and thus require no further medical therapy. For example, some studies indicate that as many as 30 percent of those with high blood pressure (specifically, the type known as sodium-sensitive hypertension) can control it by lowering their salt intake.
- If lifestyle changes prove inadequate, your doctor will prescribe one or more of the many available drugs. Diuretics (or “water pills”) increase elimination of salt and water and thus reduce overall body-fluid volume. (Some diuretics deplete the body’s levels of potassium, thus requiring potassium supplementation.) Beta-blockers interfere with nerve receptors in the heart, causing it to beat less forcefully. Calcium channel blockers reduce the ability of arterial walls to constrict. ACE inhibitors prevent the formation of a hormone that constricts blood vessels. Alpha-blockers and central alpha agonists interfere with nerve impulses that cause arteries to constrict. Vasodilators relax and so dilate the arterial walls.
- For secondary hypertension, the underlying disease must be identified and treated.
For more information on
Hypertension and related conditions, click on this link -- Johns Hopkins Health Alerts: Hypertension (High Blood Pressure) and Stroke
