High blood pressure

• Can I talk to a doctor on Gotodoctor.ca about my high blood pressure?

Yes, Gotodoctor.ca provides virtual care services for high blood pressure. A doctor will take a comprehensive in-depth history and may provide you with prescriptions. Depending on the severity of symptoms further recommendations will be provided. If a patient is suffering from a severe infection doctor will direct him/her to clinic treatment.

• What is high blood pressure?

It is a condition where blood pressure is higher than the normal values. Blood pressure is expressed as a ratio, where Systolic blood pressure is the pressure exerted on arteries when the heart contracts and the diastolic blood pressure is the pressure exerted on the arteries when the heart is fully relaxed. Generally, in an adult, it is considered as the blood pressure to be normal when systolic blood pressure is less than 140mmHg and diastolic blood pressure is less than 90mmHg. A doctor diagnoses high blood pressure if systolic blood pressure/ diastolic blood pressure or both components are constantly above the normal reference range^[1] and may prescribe medicine.

• What are the symptoms of high blood pressure?

High blood pressure can often be left undiagnosed by a doctor, as it has no identifiable symptoms at the initial stages. So it is important to have a high index of suspicion and be fully aware of even the slightest physiological change. Most common symptoms of high blood pressure are headaches, dizziness, hot flushes, and mood disorders such as low mood, frustration and irritability. Other symptoms that have been reported are chest tightness, palpitations, backache, constipation, and reduced vision^{[2, 3]}.

• How is high blood pressure treated?

High blood pressure can be treated with pharmacological or non-pharmacological methods. Non-pharmacological methods consist of diet and lifestyle modifications. It is mostly effective at the earlier stages and efforts are made to reduce blood pressure without medications. Pharmacotherapy is needed if the blood pressure cannot be controlled by lifestyle modifications. Pharmacological management includes prescription of diuretics angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitors or angiotensin receptor blockers (ARBs), beta-blockers, and calcium channel blockers (CCBs)^[4]. A doctor may prescribe a combination of medicines according to patient’s condition.

• How can an online doctor on Gotodoctor.ca treat high blood pressure?

Virtual care services provided by Gotodoctor.ca offer patients with easy access to online doctors. An appointment can be easily made with an online doctor, Continuous Blood Pressure Telemonitoring has allowed the online doctors to prescribe medications through m-health applications^[5]. Prescriptions can be obtained by online doctors. Virtual care services provided by Gotodoctor.ca assure comfort, convenience and a higher level of care for the patient.

References

1. DeGuire, J., et al., Blood pressure and hypertension. Health Rep, 2019. 30(2): p. 14-21.
2. Granados-Gámez, G., et al., A longitudinal study of symptoms beliefs in hypertension. International journal of clinical and health psychology : IJCHP, 2015. 15(3): p. 200-207.
3. Middeke, M., et al., Prevalence of hypertension-attributed symptoms in routine clinical practice: a general practitioners-based study. Journal of Human Hypertension, 2008. 22(4): p. 252-258.
4. Kitt, J., et al., New Approaches in Hypertension Management: a Review of Current and Developing Technologies and Their Potential Impact on Hypertension Care. Current hypertension reports, 2019. 21(6): p. 44-44.
5. Omboni, S., M. Caserini, and C. Coronetti, Telemedicine and M-Health in Hypertension Management: Technologies, Applications and Clinical Evidence. High Blood Press Cardiovasc Prev, 2016. 23(3): p. 187-96.