At which values do physicians speak of high blood prere?? U.S. experts have now revised these guidelines – for the first time in 14 years
The American Heart Association has revised the guideline values for high blood prere – and lowered them significantly. In the future, values from 130 to 80 mm Hg will be considered critical.
In the USA, the guideline value for the treatment of high blood prere has been lowered. According to new guidelines published by the American Heart Association, hypertension is defined as having an upper systolic value of 130 mm Hg or higher and a lower diastolic value of 80 mm Hg or higher. Previously, blood prere was considered too high at 140 over 90.
Doctors would now acknowledge that even "at these lower levels Complications could occur, new guidelines for detecting and treating high blood prere say. The figures were announced by physicians at a conference of the American Heart Association in Anaheim, California. They were last updated in 2003.
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According to the new guidelines, almost half of the U.S. population, about 46 percent, suffers from high blood prere. Previously, 32 percent fulfilled the requirements for this diagnosis. In absolute numbers, the number of people with high blood prere rises from 72 million U.S. citizens to 103 million.
High blood prere is the second leading cause of heart disease and stroke after smoking. If the blood flows through the vessels at too high a prere for years, the kidneys and blood vessels can also be damaged.
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The most important weapon in the fight against high blood prere is a healthy lifestyle. Those affected should aim for a normal body weight, drink alcohol in moderation, avoid nicotine, take deliberate breaks in their stressful daily lives and get enough exercise. "A healthy lifestyle can often reduce mild hypertension to normal values", according to the German Hypertension League. "People with a more severe form of hypertension can minimize the need for medication by adopting a healthy lifestyle."
If blood prere does not drop to a normal level within three months of a lifestyle change, hypertension is usually treated with medication. The same applies to people with particularly high blood prere.
In Germany, a blood prere of 120 to 80 mm Hg is considered normal. "Optimal" are lower values, the experts of the German Hypertension League recommend. Values between 120/80 mm Hg and 129/84 mm Hg are also considered normal. If the values are between 130/85 mm Hg and 139/89 mm Hg, they are considered "high normal". In Germany, physicians speak of high blood prere when values of 140/90 mm Hg or higher are reached.