More than 33 per cent of Indians suffer from hogh blood pressure, a study of Indian Council of Medical Research said last year.
Many of those people don’t know they have it because there are usually no warning signs. This can be dangerous, because high blood pressure can lead to life-threatening conditions like heart attack or stroke.
The good news is that you can often prevent or treat high blood pressure. Early diagnosis and heart-healthy lifestyle changes can keep high blood pressure from seriously damaging your health.
What is high blood pressure?
Two numbers describe blood pressure. The top, “systolic” pressure, is the force blood puts on the walls of arteries as its pumped out of the heart. The bottom “diastolic” number measures that same pressure but between heartbeats.
Normal is less than 120 over 80. Blood pressure naturally fluctuates throughout the day, higher when you’re physically active or stressed. But when it stays high — consistently 130 over 80 or higher, according to the most recent guidelines — it stiffens arteries and makes the heart work harder.
How to measure blood pressure
It doesn’t take a doctor’s visit. Pharmacies and sometimes even libraries offer screening, and people can use at-home monitors.
To avoid falsely high readings, the American Medical Association has tips: Sit quietly with feet on the floor, legs not crossed. Place the cuff on a bare arm, not over clothing. Don’t dangle the arm — rest it on a table.
Drugs aren’t the only way to treat high blood pressure
Lifestyle changes are the first step, especially for otherwise healthy people. Guidelines urge losing weight, exercise, eating more fruits and vegetables, limiting salt and alcohol, and taking steps to handle stress.
Medicine is a must once hypertension reaches 140 over 90. The average patient requires two or three drugs, sometimes more, along with healthier living.
But the hypertension Garrity has struggled with since his late 20s is treatment-resistant. Despite taking four to six drugs plus a strict diet and exercise, his blood pressure regularly reached 150 over 100 or worse.
What is renal denervation?
Doctors thread a small catheter, or tube, through blood vessels to reach the kidneys, and then beam in ultrasound or radiofrequency energy. Those pulses pass through the renal arteries to selectively target surrounding nerves, said Dr. Joseph Garasic, a Mass General interventional cardiologist who performed Garrity’s procedure. It takes about an hour.
Although already used in other countries, a key U.S. trial of renal denervation failed about a decade ago, prompting changes before researchers tried again. In November 2023, the FDA approved two catheter systems, from Recor Medical and Medtronic.
It’s not a cure – and some patients get no benefit. But multiple studies show on average an 8 to 10-point drop in blood pressure, a modest but important improvement but to see a bigger drop, enough to gradually scale back medications.
The FDA deemed the procedure safe for carefully chosen patients — it wasn’t tested in those with kidney disease or narrowed arteries, for example. And studies have lasted only a few years, not long enough to tell if the nerves might eventually regenerate.
Guidance from the American Heart Association urges would-be patients and experienced doctors to have “thoughtful and informed discussions” to decide who’s a good candidate.
Inputs with Associated Press Health and Science Department
