A person experiencing a heart attack
In Kenya, the major factors that contribute to complications of Uncontrolled High blood pressure. These include:
Stigma
Lack of awareness,
Poor compliance to high blood pressure medications
Lack of frequent checkups
High blood pressure can damage your health in many ways if not controlled.
It can seriously hurt important organs like your heart, brain, kidneys, and eyes.
The good news is that, in most cases, you can manage your blood pressure to lower your risk for serious health problems.
Here at Hello Daktari ,we are able to assist you keep your Blood pressure on check thus avoiding complications that result from uncontrolled high blood pressure.
This would be done through our tailored advice through online medical consultations at any part of the world and Home based care services within Nairobi and its environs.
Reach out to us on our website https://hellodaktari.co.ke and book an appointment with us.
Complications of Uncontrolled High Blood Pressure:
- Heart failure
A condition that means your heart can’t pump enough blood and oxygen to your other organs, causing the heart has to work extra hard in order to meet the demands of the body.
This can in turn lead to an enlarged heart (cardiomegaly) which would interfere with the normal functioning of the heart.
- Heart Disease
High blood pressure can damage your arteries by making them less elastic, which decreases the flow of blood and oxygen to your heart and leads to heart disease.
- Heart Attack
Blood supply to your heart muscle can be interfered with due to blockage of the coronary arteries. This would mean that the heart muscle would begin to die without enough oxygen.
Coronary arteries normally supply the heart muscle with blood and they may get blocked by blood clots or fatty deposits.
The longer the blood flow is blocked, the greater the damage to the heart.
- Stroke and Brain Problems
High blood pressure can cause the arteries that supply blood and oxygen to the brain to burst or be blocked, causing a stroke.
Brain cells die during a stroke because they do not get enough oxygen.
Stroke can cause serious disabilities in speech, movement, and other basic activities, it can also kill you.
- Kidney Disease
Uncontrolled hypertension is the second leading cause of kidney/renal failure.
Adults with diabetes, high blood pressure, or both have a higher risk of developing chronic kidney disease than those without these conditions.
Uncontrolled hypertension would often lead to constriction, narrowing and damage to the blood vessels that normally supply the kidneys.
This often reduces blood flow to the kidneys thus interfering with their normal functioning.
- Eye problems
Damage to the arteries that normally supply the eyes would interfere with supply of oxygen to the eyes.
This would in turn lead to visual impairment, bleeding in the eyes or even blindness if the concern is not addressed.
How do I know if I have high blood pressure?
There’s only one way to know if you have high blood pressure: Have a doctor or other health professional measure it.
Measuring your blood pressure is quick and painless.
In Kenya, it’s easy to have your blood pressure checked, all you need to do is walk into a clinic, chemist or hospital and request the health care provider check your blood pressure.
Talk with your health care team about regularly measuring your blood pressure at home, also called self-measured blood pressure (SMBP) monitoring.
High blood pressure is called the “silent killer” because it usually has no warning signs or symptoms, and many people do not know they have it.