Hypertension Essay

Medical guidelines associate hypertension with blood pressure higher than one hundred and thirty over eighty millimeters of mercury mmHg. More than 85 percent of the US population have high blood pressure. The acute cause of high blood pressure is stress although it can happen on its own because of underlying medical conditions such as kidney diseases. The exact cause of high blood pressure has not been defined, but several factors contribute to hypertension such as smoking, being obese, consumption of excess salt, lack of physical exercise and family history. Most of the major causes of hypertension are a result of one behavior. When the actual cause of hypertension can be traced, the condition is usually referred to as secondary hypertension. Kidney disease is considered the primary cause of secondary hypertension.

Secondary hypertension can also result from tumor and disorders that make adrenal gland to excrete excess hormones than required which increases the blood pressure. Medications that constrict blood vessels and family planning methods can also increase one’s blood pressure level. Individuals over the age of 35 years are more likely to suffers from high blood pressure. This implies that many people with high blood pressure continue to die because of lack of better treatment of the disease. Controlling hypertension requires a proper understanding of the goals, strategies, and targets for managing the disease. The goal of treating hypertension is managing the disease to avoid it from progressing into cardiovascular diseases which easily causes deaths. The current practice related to high blood pressure involves pharmacies coming up with drugs that show increase effectiveness in decreasing blood pressure and succeeding cardiovascular events.

Lifestyle intervention is currently used as means of managing hypertension. Black Americans record the highest rate of contracting hypertension and worse blood pressure control than the whites. This difference is caused mainly because of poor medical adherence and cultural values and beliefs regarding treatment of hypertension. Clinical Researchers also indicate that African American show that they are knowledgeable about hypertension and ways of managing it but showed no efforts in practicing the measures. Many patients with hypertension have poorly controlled blood pressure, and Africa Americans make a large percentage of this group. PICO question Are patients with hypertension P who engage in physical exercise I benefit from lowering their blood pressure o compared to patients who do not exercise c? The keywords I used for search are Hypertension, Causes of high blood pressure, Intervention and prevention of hypertension and prevalence of hypertension in the US.

The first non-research piece of evidence provides information about high blood pressure. It informs on the major causes of hypertension such as excess fat in the body, lack of physical exercise and excessive consumption of alcohol and salt. The author also provides information on diagnosis and treatment of hypertension. The author includes stress management, physical exercise and monitoring of body weight as the major remedies against high blood pressure. The piece of evidence also provides medical treatment for hypertension which includes beta-blockers and alpha-blockers, angiotensin receptor blockers and diuretics (MacGill , 2017). The physical exercise that one can engage in include jogging, participating in sports, weight lifting, swimming, riding a bicycle and dancing. The parties to be involved in the implementation of awareness of hypertension and physical exercise as a means of lowering blood pressure will include the state government.

Support from the government will guarantee success in creating awareness about hypertension by financing the activity and allowing the use of public halls and stadiums to hold rallies and campaigns against hypertension. The support from volunteers' peer health educators will be much needed. The peer health educators can attend sessions where they are taught about hypertension and importance of healthy living, and later they can reach people in their communities and deliver the message (Mayo Clinic Staff, 2015). One of the interventions to improve patients' adherence to medication, physical exercise, and change of behavior is through education. Caregivers are therefore advised to provide extensive knowledge about high blood pressure and their risk factors to the patients. Another intervention that can help remove barriers to the misconception about hypertension and encourage life modification is through counseling.

Counseling is also helpful in managing stress which usually increases blood pressure. Peer health and clinical psychological counselors are useful in relieving individuals from stress. Buford Hypertension and Aging 2016 correlational Large sample An individual age correlates with chances of contracting hypertension Level II A Chances of contracting hypertension increases with age Spyros Makridakis and James J DiNicolantonio Hypertension: empirical evidence and implications in 2014 2014 Descriptive Large sample Adverse side effect associated with hypertension drugs Level I A The current drugs for hypertension are associated with adverse side effects which some can lead to death Daniel T. Lackland Racial Differences in Hypertension: Implications for High Blood Pressure Management 2015 Correlational Large sample Racial disparities in hypertension Level I B The racial disparities in hypertension risk have the same similarities in control and prevention management.

Keith M. Diaz, and Daichi Shimbo, Physical Activity and the Prevention of Hypertension 2013 Correlational Large Sample Physical exercise lowers blood pressure Level II A Recent pieces of evidence suggest that there is a positive relation between physical exercise and reduction in blood pressure Cheryl R. Dennison Expanding the Role of Nurses to Improve Hypertension Care and Control Globally 2016 Description Large sample Nurses role should be improved to improve care for hypertension problem Level I B Nurses have gained a lot of experience in providing care to patients with hypertension, and their roles should be enhanced to increase care for patients with high blood pressure References AMERICAN HEART ASSOCIATION NEWS. J. Hypertension: empirical evidence and implications in 2014. Retrieved from NCBI: https://www.