High blood pressure
Sustained hypertension. It has no symptoms and is the most common cause of silent cardiovascular damage.
When to seek care
Go to the emergency room if your pressure is 180/120 mmHg or higher along with chest pain, shortness of breath, trouble speaking, weakness on one side of the body, or vision changes. Book a visit if two or more readings on separate days exceed 140/90 mmHg, even with no symptoms.
What it feels like
- Usually none
- Headache at the back of the head
- High readings on repeated measurement
Hypertension is the most common cardiovascular condition and the least noticeable. It can spend years damaging the heart, kidneys, retina, and brain arteries without producing a single symptom; by the time discomfort appears, the damage has been settling in for a while.
This is why diagnosis is not made from one office reading. It is confirmed with repeated measurements and, when in doubt, with 24-hour monitoring that shows real pressure away from the clinic, including overnight.
Treatment is rarely one drug forever. It is a regimen adjusted to the response, to damage already present, and to whatever other risk factors come with it.