Postural Hypotension Explained
5954
Disease & Illness > Hypertension
Mar 1, 2007
Mark MacKay
Postural Hypotension Explained
Before we can look at postural hypotension we must first review that basics of how blood pressure works.
When you stand up, your blood immediately tries to pool in the veins in your legs. If allowed to occur, this would be a bad thing, because there would be a shortage of blood in the rest of your body.
This pooling of blood in the leg veins is stopped by nerves, which contract the leg veins ensuring that enough blood returns to your heart and that there is no reduction in the amount of blood that your heart pumps. This maintains the blood supply to your brain and other parts of your body.
However, if there is pooling of blood in your veins, less blood returns to your heart and less is pumped out which means a reduction in the amount of blood going to your brain and other parts of your body. This causes symptoms of dizziness and some people may faint as a result.
Therefore, if you have a low blood pressure and you also have symptoms of dizziness or faintness when standing up suddenly you should have your blood pressure checked both when you are lying down and when you then stand up. This drop in blood pressure when you stand up is called postural hypotension.
One of most common causes of postural hypotension is the result of an acute illness, such as severe blood loss or sudden severe infection or damage to the heart may cause low blood pressure and very low blood pressures when sitting up or standing. When this happens blood pressure levels are an important measure of the severity of the illness and that is why blood pressure is measured so often in acutely ill people.
Another potential cause of postural hypotension is blood pressure lowering drugs. The class of drugs that is commonly used nowadays that may cause a drop in standing pressure are alpha blockers, such as doxazosin.
If you are older, and particularly if you have diabetes, there may already be a tendency for your blood pressure to fall when you stand.
If you get severe food poisoning and are sick and have diarrhoea, you may lose large amounts of fluid from your body. If you do get severe food poisoning it is important to check your blood pressure.
Rare diseases of the nerves that control the reflexes in the veins can prevent the veins from contracting when they stand up, resulting in a severe drop in blood pressure. This is very rare. If you have a severe drop in blood pressure when you stand and you are otherwise well, then you should have further investigations.
Diabetes can also cause damage to the nerves supplying blood vessels and can therefore be associated with a drop in pressure when standing up.
Failure of the adrenal gland. The adrenal glands are two very small glands just above the kidney that produce important hormones, one of which is aldosterone. This hormone is very important in controlling the amount of salt in your body.
If your adrenal glands become damaged this can mean that there is not enough aldosterone in your body. This leads to a loss of salt from your body and this may cause low blood pressure, with dizziness or faintness when you stand up suddenly. This condition is very rare, but important to pick up as; it can easily be treated by replacing the missing hormones.
Investigations are only conducted if you have symptoms that suggest a fall in blood pressure when you stand up, such as dizziness or faintness. If you do have these symptoms then your doctor should conduct further tests or refer you to a specialist.
This will mean having a tilt test where you will be strapped to a table and tilted, with careful measurements of heart rate and blood pressure taken. Hormone levels in your blood may also be measured to check that your adrenal glands and nerves are working normally.
Failure of the adrenal glands can be treated by replacement of the missing hormones. If you have a disease of the nerves then this can be more difficult to treat, but you may respond to drugs that stimulate the nervous system. You may also find that wearing elastic stockings or an anti-gravity suit, or taking hormones that cause retention of salt and/or eating more salt can help. Talk to your doctor for more information.
When you stand up, your blood immediately tries to pool in the veins in your legs. If allowed to occur, this would be a bad thing, because there would be a shortage of blood in the rest of your body.
This pooling of blood in the leg veins is stopped by nerves, which contract the leg veins ensuring that enough blood returns to your heart and that there is no reduction in the amount of blood that your heart pumps. This maintains the blood supply to your brain and other parts of your body.
However, if there is pooling of blood in your veins, less blood returns to your heart and less is pumped out which means a reduction in the amount of blood going to your brain and other parts of your body. This causes symptoms of dizziness and some people may faint as a result.
Therefore, if you have a low blood pressure and you also have symptoms of dizziness or faintness when standing up suddenly you should have your blood pressure checked both when you are lying down and when you then stand up. This drop in blood pressure when you stand up is called postural hypotension.
One of most common causes of postural hypotension is the result of an acute illness, such as severe blood loss or sudden severe infection or damage to the heart may cause low blood pressure and very low blood pressures when sitting up or standing. When this happens blood pressure levels are an important measure of the severity of the illness and that is why blood pressure is measured so often in acutely ill people.
Another potential cause of postural hypotension is blood pressure lowering drugs. The class of drugs that is commonly used nowadays that may cause a drop in standing pressure are alpha blockers, such as doxazosin.
If you are older, and particularly if you have diabetes, there may already be a tendency for your blood pressure to fall when you stand.
If you get severe food poisoning and are sick and have diarrhoea, you may lose large amounts of fluid from your body. If you do get severe food poisoning it is important to check your blood pressure.
Rare diseases of the nerves that control the reflexes in the veins can prevent the veins from contracting when they stand up, resulting in a severe drop in blood pressure. This is very rare. If you have a severe drop in blood pressure when you stand and you are otherwise well, then you should have further investigations.
Diabetes can also cause damage to the nerves supplying blood vessels and can therefore be associated with a drop in pressure when standing up.
Failure of the adrenal gland. The adrenal glands are two very small glands just above the kidney that produce important hormones, one of which is aldosterone. This hormone is very important in controlling the amount of salt in your body.
If your adrenal glands become damaged this can mean that there is not enough aldosterone in your body. This leads to a loss of salt from your body and this may cause low blood pressure, with dizziness or faintness when you stand up suddenly. This condition is very rare, but important to pick up as; it can easily be treated by replacing the missing hormones.
Investigations are only conducted if you have symptoms that suggest a fall in blood pressure when you stand up, such as dizziness or faintness. If you do have these symptoms then your doctor should conduct further tests or refer you to a specialist.
This will mean having a tilt test where you will be strapped to a table and tilted, with careful measurements of heart rate and blood pressure taken. Hormone levels in your blood may also be measured to check that your adrenal glands and nerves are working normally.
Failure of the adrenal glands can be treated by replacement of the missing hormones. If you have a disease of the nerves then this can be more difficult to treat, but you may respond to drugs that stimulate the nervous system. You may also find that wearing elastic stockings or an anti-gravity suit, or taking hormones that cause retention of salt and/or eating more salt can help. Talk to your doctor for more information.
Article Source: http://www.articlerich.com
Mark MacKay is a researcher and freelance health columnist. He is also the creator of High Blood Pressure Treatments, a web site setup to help people find useful and accurate information on Blood Pressure.
Write a Review
Add to My Favorite
Refer it to Friend
Report Article
Other links owned by this user
Before we can look at postural hypotension we must first review that basics of how blood pressure works. When you stand up, your blood immediately tries to pool in the veins in your legs. If allowed to occur, this would be a bad thing,
Category:
Hypertension is commonly known as high blood pressure and relates to e pressure or tension in e arteries and veins of e body. Blood pressure is e pressure at causes e blood to flow rough e body from areas of high pressure, e arteries
Category:
Blood pressure is a very coon diagnostic tool used by doctors and nurses when trying to exaining patients health and wellbeing. Measuring blood pressure is a very coon edical test that is carried out by doctors, nurses or a personal blood testing
Category:
Low blood pressure is a condition where your blood pressure is much lower than usual. This can cause dizziness lightheadedness or even fainting. When the blood pressure is too low, there is not enough blood flow to the heart, brain, and other vital
Category:
High blood pressre is often called the "Silent Killer" This is becase it often has no warning signs or symptoms. Therefore getting yor blood pressre checked reglarly is extremely important as it cold save yor life. High blood pressre, if left
Category:
Other links at Disease & Illness > Hypertension
Copyrigt 2006 Frank Mangano Did your daily weig-in cause your blood pressure to spike? If it did, you are not alone. More tan 50 percent of Americans are overweigt or obese and te numbers just keep on rising. Tese socking statistics
Category:
High blood pressure is known as a silent killer. And probably most don?t even think about their blood pressure. However, high blood pressure can be quite fatal. There are some symptoms that can indicate that you have high blood pressure, and can prevent
Category:
Though the cause of high blood pressure, in the majority of cases, is unknown. This type of high blood pressure is known as "primary or ntial hypertension" and ninety five percent of sufferers, more than 70 million Americans, have "primary or
Category:
Blood Pressure Blood is circulated through the arteries and veins to all the parts of our body. The pressure by which the blood pushes against the arteries' walls is known as the blood pressure. Whenever the heart beats it pumps blood into
Category:
Next time you are with a group of 3 friends, take a good look around; one of you will have high blood pressure. The sad part is, since there are no symptoms, you may not even be aware of it. Untreated high blood pressure can lead to heart attack,
Category:
Site Sponsor
Directory Statistics
Articles: 68205
Categories: 501
Yahoo Entertainment
