very confused

[scag]

hello,first off let me say that this forum is very informative and we should all thank the dr.s who give up some of there busy scheduale to help us out in here!,i am a 30 year old male upon completing a physical 6 months ago my dr found a bp reading of 150/90,and he told me to return for a 2nd check in a month after returning he found the same reading and put me on 12 1/2 mg of hydrochlorothyazide,i am overweight about 60 pounds but other than that i am fine my total choloestorol was perfect etc..,i did have a lone bout of afib last year but have been checked by cardio and no problems i was put on 50 mg of atenolol that my dr is weaning me off of now,here is my dilema,i bought a digital bp machine and i take it 2x a day the highest reading i get is 130/77 and thats seems to be the reading everytime so i am guessing it is accurate?could a reading of 150/90 be white coat syndrome?i dont feel nervous in the office unless it is subconsious?#1 is 150/90 enough for meds?he uped my dose to 25mg yesterday of the hydro,#2 when my system is off the atenolol tottally will that cause problems from being on it for 9 months?#3 what can i do for the blood pressure i know losing weight is #1 i already lost 12 pounds,i just want to know how high is high is 150/90 something to be worried about?
thanks again for your reply!

[-J]

Hi, Im 18, I weigh 175 and am 5'11" with body fat %age around 8%. I lift weights regularly and enjoy full contact fighting. I recently took my BP and it is 160/79. WHAT IS UP WITH THIS???? (I have recently been visably stressed out, new job, car accident (minor) interrupted sleep, nail biting, fidgeting, etc.) Could I simply be stressed out about things at the time, or is this indicative of a serious problem.

[NvCabg]

scag, thanks for posting - I too have found this forum informative and supportive.
I was concerned by your remark "i am fine my total choloestorol was perfect etc"--  After reading about the results of the REVERSAL study, it may be appropriate for you to be hesitant about accepting ANY measured cholesterol amounts as "perfect" and thus not in need of medication by statins.  The results seem to show that "lower is better" even for the healthiest groups, and that benefits are relatively better for patients with heart issues.

as posted by Marilyn,

"Hypertensive patients are at increased risk of the following:
Heart disease .....) "

Question for the forum as well then: Is it not appropriate to use Statins for a patient presenting only high blood pressure symptoms, to address this increased risk?

[speedmachine]

MY BLOOD PRESURE IS VERY ERATIC 141/70 137/65 138/59 CAN ANYONE TELL ME WHY IM 47 MALE OVER WEIGHT I HAVE FITS OF BEING VERY TIRED IS THIS SOME THING TO DO WITH BLOOD PRESURE WHAT IS THE NORMAL BLOOD PRESSURE.AND THE DIFFERANCE BETWEEN SYSTOLIC PRESURE DIASTOLIC PRESSURE SO FOR EXAMPLE 141-70=71 DOES THIS MEAN ANYTHING. WHAT IS THE BOTTOM LINE AND TOP LINE FOR CONCERN SYSTOLIC PRESURE AND THE SAME FOR DIASTOLIC PRESURE DOES ANY ONE NO

[scag]

my doc also said they dont treat until it reaches 140 so at 150 i am still in the not all done yet range?lol

[chrisr]

I have the same problem with BP being always high in the Dr's office and 120-130/80-90 with the home machine. However its mainly the systolic thats high 140-150 and I think this is called ISH for isolated systolic hypertension for which high salt intake is a major problem. In my case the cardio even refuses to look at my digital wrist monitor and does not believe in it period. I have also been instructed to double my dose of Diovan from 80 to 160mg but very sceptical since I am not sure of my true BP and very wary of increasing my med. I think this is a serious problem since too high BP without meds can be dangerous but so too is taking more med than is necessary. I think that there should be some way of standardizing each brand of home BP monitor to make it comparable with the office machine. The home machines are very convenient but they are also not cheap and you remain very dubious about your true BP readings.
Thanks,
Chris R

[scag]

thanks konopka for your post i appreciate you taking the time to tell me about your situation.does the atenolol keep your bp under control now?

[CCF-M.D.-RCJ]

scag,

Thanks for the post and nice comments.

Q1:"so i am guessing it is accurate?"

Probably, but you could get a regular cuff to verify.

Q2:"is 150/90 enough for meds?"

Absolutely, although there is a decent chance that if you lost 50-60#, the high blood pressure would normalize.  That is to say that weight loss could cure your hypertension!

Q3:"when my system is off the atenolol tottally will that cause problems from being on it for 9 months?#"

Not if you taper it.

Q4:"what can i do for the blood pressure i know losing weight is #1 i already lost 12 pounds,i just want to know how high is high is 150/90 something to be worried about?"

Losing weight, avoidance of excessive alcohol, and avoidance of stimulants is a great first lifestyle start.

One last final comment, the term "lone afib" only applies to those persons without other risk factors for stroke.  High blood pressure is a risk factor for stroke.

Best of luck.