High blood pressure and eye disease

This is an automatically translated article.

The article was written by MSc La Thi Thuy - Interventional Cardiologist, Cardiology Center - Vinmec Central Park International General Hospital.

1. Causes

High blood pressure values ​​and prolonged, will make eye problems worse.
You are at high risk for damage and vision loss when you have additional co-morbidities: diabetes, high cholesterol, or smoking
Very high blood pressure levels suddenly are very rare. However, if it happens, it will seriously affect the eyes. Damage to the retina can be:
Damage to the optic nerve in the eye due to poor blood supply Obstruction of a branch of an artery that supplies blood to the retina Obstruction of a vein responsible for transporting blood out of the retina Increasing belly weight or consuming too much salt in meals can cause high blood pressure. Work and life pressures, genes can also increase blood pressure. Not every case of high blood pressure can be found to be the cause. Such cases are called primary hypertension. When it comes to blood pressure, it means the force of blood pushing against the artery walls. Blood pressure value consists of 2 numbers expressed as 120/80 mmHg
The top number, also known as systolic blood pressure, is the pressure in the blood vessels when the heart pumps blood away The bottom number is also called diastolic pressure is the pressure when the heart is at rest between ejections. Your ideal blood pressure reading should be 120/80 or less. If the number is above 140/90 or more, it is considered high blood pressure.

So why is high blood pressure a concern?
When high blood pressure will require a very strong force of ejection force to act on the artery wall, so it will also damage itself. And will also damage the heart, kidneys and other organs: heart attack, stroke, loss of vision.
How do you know you have high blood pressure?
Most people won't know they have high blood pressure because it often doesn't have any symptoms, and you don't know until your blood pressure reading is checked incidentally or when complications develop. : heart disease or kidney disease. You can check your blood pressure at home or in clinics or hospitals. If your blood pressure readings are high, your doctor will give you a target blood pressure number that needs to be adjusted. There are many interventions to achieve target blood pressure: a healthy diet, exercising at least 30 minutes/day, quitting smoking, eating less salt less than 1,500g/salt per day or other measures. Eliminate stress: meditation, yoga. However, once lifestyle changes are not enough, your doctor may prescribe blood pressure medication to help keep your blood pressure steady.

2. Symptoms

Most patients with hypertensive retinopathy usually have no symptoms until the disease is in its late stages
Symptoms may include:
Double vision, blurred vision, or loss of vision Headache Symptoms Sudden onset is a medical emergency. Usually the blood pressure value will be very high

3. Examination and testing

The doctor will use an ophthalmoscope to check for constriction of the blood vessels and signs that there is drainage from the blood vessels
The degree of retinal damage is divided into 4 levels:
Grade 1: Asymptomatic Grade 2-3: vascular changes, drainage from blood vessels and edema anywhere on the retina Grade 4: optic and central nerves of the retina points) skin edema. This damage can lead to vision loss You may need more specialized tests to check your vascular system

4. Treatment

The only treatment for hypertensive retinopathy is blood pressure stabilization

5. Prognosis and prognosis

Patients with grade 4 retinal damage will often have kidney and heart damage due to high blood pressure. And have a higher risk of stroke.
In most cases of high blood pressure affecting the eyes, the retina will heal if the blood pressure is under control. However, some people with grade 4 retinopathy will have long-term damage to the optic nerve or macula.
Must be treated as soon as you have high blood pressure with vision changes or headaches.
Vinmec International General Hospital has an in-depth blood pressure check-up service, helping patients determine the causes, complications and levels of hypertension so that they can treat the disease and minimize the sequelae of the disease. affects the eyes as well as many other organs in the body. With a combination of many specialties, Vinmec is also a place to screen and treat many diseases, including vision-related diseases and retinal complications, in addition to examining patients with hypertension. .
The health checkup process is performed by a team of doctors with many years of experience and modern equipment. Therefore, customers can be assured of the quality of examination at Vinmec.

Please dial HOTLINE for more information or register for an appointment HERE. Download MyVinmec app to make appointments faster and to manage your bookings easily.

Reference source: webmd.com