Concerned about blood pressure

[me1986]

I'm 22 years old and have been doing weight training for the past 6 years and have used steroids occassionally.  I'm a bit worried about my blood pressure.  My diastolic reading always seems to be low.  I get regular readings such as -

115/49
125/55
120/50

My systolic seems to range from 110-145 and diastolic from 49-65.  Do these seem ok?  I know my systolic goes slightly high sometimes but I have started to do more cardio to try and bring this down (diet is good).  I have been diagnosed with a heart murmor at the docs but went for a excerise test and ECO which came back normal although my ECG showed some "changes" but they didn't seem concerned about this.  They done the ECG at the docs after hearing the murmor and sent this off to the cardiologist who then performed the ECO and Stress Test.  I didn't get to really speak to anyone about it and I chased it up at my docs about 3 months later and they said they came back ok just need to go back in 5 years?

I know with BP lower = better but is my diastolic too low, (resulting in my pulse pressure always being high (60-80)?

I talked to my doctor about my concerns about my BP but she just said it's fine, lower is better.  I mentioned about the pulse pressure but she had no idea what that was even after me explaining it was the difference between the two numbers!

[Melvine]

i have this problem too and mine is worse than yours. It went from 120/80 to 140/60 and then 130/60.

If your blood pressure returns to normal within a while u r ok. If not you may want to have your valve checked.

It may be due to a leakage of the valve. It is highly unlikely that we have hardened arteries at our age (im 27 btw).

[markmsn10]

Pulse pressure can vary greatly in a person at any time.   For example, during exercise- systolic pressure rises and diastolic pressure either decreases or stays the same.   This equals high pulse pressure and is normal in that setting.   Same goes for just walking around.   Just take a sneaky look at people using the bp monitors at Walmart or drug stores... I hardly see the 40 pulse pressure.   I was also worried about mine.   Although mine varies from around 55 and sometimes is at around 40... but been as high as 70.   I'm 29 years old and also have a murmur- all my life actually but was found to be nothing wrong on echo.   So I am not worried about the pulse pressure-- furthermore there aren't many studies about pulse pressure yet.   Taking a simple math equation like systolic - diastolic never seemed very scientific for me anyways.  

So is your diastolic pressure always this low at the Dr's office or are you using a home monitor?

[kenkeith]

For an insight, the numeric difference between your systolic and diastolic blood pressure is called your pulse pressure. For example, if your resting blood pressure is 120/80 millimeters of mercury (mm Hg), your pulse pressure is 40 — the difference between 120 and 80.

Certain conditions can increase your pulse pressure.... These include aortic valve disorders, severe anemia and overactive thyroid (hyperthyroidism). But by far the most important cause of elevated pulse pressure is stiffness and reduced elasticity of the aorta, the largest artery in the body. This may be due to high blood pressure or fatty deposits on the walls of the arteries (atherosclerosis). The greater the difference between your systolic and diastolic numbers, the stiffer and more damaged the vessels are thought to be.

Evidence suggests that pulse pressure may be a strong predictor of heart problems, especially in older adults, but doesn't rule out younger individuals. But systolic pressure is the best predictor in people older than age 55. In adults older than age 60, a pulse pressure greater than 60 mmHg is abnormal. Treating high blood pressure usually reduces pulse pressure as well.

Your doctor doesn't appear concerned so there may not be corelated conditions identified that would require further tests.  You are probably OK.

[me1986]

Bump for opinions

[me1986]

Any further opinions on my blood and resulting pulse pressure?

[me1986]

Thanks for the reply.  Sorry I should have made myself mroe clear, I was refferring to my pulse pressure rather than pulse.  My pulse is quite normal resting (55-70).

[remar]

no, normal resting pulse is 75. so yours is not high. normal blood pressure when resting is 120/80 or below. your diastolic seems to be a little low and you systolic seems to be within normal range. your dr. seems to think this is fine. keep an eye on it so it does'nt go too low. but i would'nt worry about your pulse or your systolic pressure at all. i hope this helps some. remar