When is blood pressure dangerously high

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that about one out of every three American adults have high blood pressure, or hypertension. Because high blood pressure is so common, it might be tempting to assume that it’s no big deal. But the truth is, that when left untreated, high blood pressure can put you at risk for potentially life-threatening complications.

Here are eight ways that uncontrolled high blood pressure can negatively affect your health:

It raises your risk of heart attack and stroke.
High blood pressure damages the walls of your arteries. This makes them more likely to develop deposits of plaque that harden, narrow or block your arteries. These deposits also can lead to blood clots. Blood clots can flow through your bloodstream and block blood flow to your heart or brain, resulting in a heart attack or stroke.
It makes you more likely to develop heart failure.
When your arteries are hardened or narrowed, your heart has to work harder to circulate your blood. This increased workload can cause your heart to become larger and fail to supply your organs with blood.
You may experience chest pain.
Chest pain, also called angina, occurs when the heart does not get the blood it needs. When people with high blood pressure perform activities such as walking uphill, going up steps, or exercising, angina can cause pressure, squeezing, pain, or a feeling of fullness in the chest.
It can cause kidney damage.
Your kidneys help your body get rid of toxins and regulate many of your body’s complex functions. High blood pressure can cause damage to the arteries around your kidneys. This can reduce their ability to do their job and, at worst, lead to kidney failure.
You are more likely to develop vision problems.
Your eyes are full of small blood vessels that can easily be strained or damaged by high blood pressure. It also can cause swelling of your optic nerve. Lowering your blood pressure sometimes can reverse vision problems. But high blood pressure left untreated can cause permanent vision loss or impairment.
You could develop sexual dysfunction.
High blood pressure can cause low libido in women and erectile dysfunction in men.
It raises your risk for peripheral artery disease (PAD).
PAD occurs when the arteries in your legs, arms, stomach, or head become narrowed and cause pain, cramping, and fatigue. If you have PAD, you also are at an increased risk of heart attack and stroke.
You have a higher risk of hypertensive crisis.
A hypertensive crisis is a medical emergency that causes your blood pressure to rise above 180/120 rapidly. If your blood pressure gets too high, it can cause damage to your organs and other potentially life-threatening complications. Symptoms of a hypertensive crisis include:
- Blurry vision or other vision problems
- Dizziness
- Lightheadedness
- Severe headaches
- Nosebleed
- Shortness of breath
- Chest discomfort or pain
- A feeling of anxiety or that something is not right

If you have any of these symptoms, call 911 or visit the nearest hospital emergency department right away.

Protecting Your Cardiovascular Health

The good news is that your doctor can identify high blood pressure with regular checks. If found, it can be successfully treated using a combination of medication and heart-healthy lifestyle changes—or sometimes, lifestyle changes alone.

Making small changes to your habits, such as eating a lower sodium diet, getting regular exercise, maintaining a healthy weight, limiting alcohol intake, and quitting smoking can lower your blood pressure by 10-20 mmHg or more. And, if your doctor has prescribed blood pressure medication, it is important that you take it as directed.

Taking high blood pressure seriously and following your doctor’s treatment instructions can lower your risks of serious complications and make a big difference in your overall health.

If you have uncontrolled high blood pressure or think you might be at risk, schedule an appointment with your primary care provider today.

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Blood pressure is the force of your blood as it flows through the arteries in your body. Arteries are blood vessels that carry blood from your heart to the rest of your body. When your heart beats, it pushes blood through your arteries. As the blood flows, it puts pressure on your artery walls. This is called blood pressure.

High blood pressure (also called hypertension) happens when your blood moves through your arteries at a higher pressure than normal. Many different things can cause high blood pressure. If your blood pressure gets too high or stays high for a long time, it can cause health problems. Uncontrolled high blood pressure puts you at a higher risk for stroke, heart disease, heart attack, and kidney failure.

There are 2 types of high blood pressure.

Primary hypertension. This is also called essential hypertension. It is called this when there is no known cause for your high blood pressure. This is the most common type of hypertension. This type of blood pressure usually takes many years to develop. It probably is a result of your lifestyle, environment, and how your body changes as you age.

Secondary hypertension. This is when a health problem or medicine is causing your high blood pressure. Things that can cause secondary hypertension include:

Kidney problems.
Sleep apnea.
Thyroid or adrenal gland problems.
Some medicines.

Medically Reviewed by James Beckerman, MD, FACC on August 06, 2021

Blood pressure is the measure of the force of blood pushing against blood vessel walls. The heart pumps blood into blood vessels, which carry the blood throughout the body. High blood pressure, also called hypertension, is dangerous because it makes the heart work harder to pump blood out to the body and contributes to hardening of the arteries, or atherosclerosis, to stroke, kidney disease, and to heart failure.

A blood pressure reading is written like this: 120/80. It's read as "120 over 80." The top number is called the systolic, and bottom number is called the diastolic. The ranges are:

Normal: Less than 120 over 80 (120/80)
Elevated: 120-129/less than 80
Stage 1 high blood pressure: 130-139/80-89
Stage 2 high blood pressure: 140 and above/90 and above
Hypertension crisis: higher than 180/higher than 120 -- See a doctor right away

If your blood pressure is above the normal range, talk to your doctor about how to lower it.

The exact causes of high blood pressure are not known, but several things may play a role, including:

Smoking
Being overweight or obese
Lack of physical activity
Too much salt in the diet
Too much alcohol consumption (more than 1 to 2 drinks per day)
Stress
Older age
Genetics
Family history of high blood pressure
Chronic kidney disease
Adrenal and thyroid disorders
Sleep apnea

Essential Hypertension

In as many as 95% of high blood pressure cases in the U.S., the underlying cause can't be found. This type of high blood pressure is called "essential hypertension."

Though essential hypertension remains somewhat mysterious, it has been linked to certain risk factors. High blood pressure tends to run in families and is more likely to affect men than women. Age and race also play a role. In the United States, blacks are twice as likely as whites to have high blood pressure, although the gap begins to narrow around age 44. After age 65, black women have the highest incidence of high blood pressure.

Essential hypertension is also greatly influenced by diet and lifestyle. The link between salt and high blood pressure is especially compelling. People living on the northern islands of Japan eat more salt per capita than anyone else in the world and have the highest incidence of essential hypertension.

Most people with high blood pressure are "salt sensitive," meaning that anything more than the minimal bodily need for salt is too much for them and increases their blood pressure. Other factors that can raise the risk of having essential hypertension include obesity; diabetes; stress; insufficient intake of potassium, calcium, and magnesium; lack of physical activity; and chronic alcohol consumption.

Secondary Hypertension

When a direct cause for high blood pressure can be identified, the condition is described as secondary hypertension. Among the known causes of secondary hypertension, kidney disease ranks highest. Hypertension can also be triggered by tumors or other abnormalities that cause the adrenal glands (small glands that sit atop the kidneys) to secrete excess amounts of the hormones that elevate blood pressure. Birth control pills -- specifically those containing estrogen -- and pregnancy can boost blood pressure, as can medications that constrict blood vessels.