Most forms of hypotension happen because your body is unafile to bring blood pressure back to normal or unable to it fast enough. Some people have low blood pressure all of the time. They have no signs or symptoms, and their low blood pressure is normal for them. In other people, certain conditions or factors cause blood pressure to drop below normal. Hypotension is a medical concern only if it causes signs or symptoms, such as dizziness, fainting, or, in extreme cases, shock!
Hypotension can be dangerous. It can make a person fall because of dizziness or fainting. With prompt and proper treatment, shock can be successfully treated. Types of Hypotension There are several types of hypotension. People who always have low blood pressure have chronic asymptomatic hypotension. They have no signs or symptoms and need no treatment. Their low blood pressure is normal for them.
Other types of hypotension occur only sometimes, when blood pressure suddenly drops too low. The symptoms and effects on the body range from mild to severe. The three main types of this kind of hypotension are orthostatic hypotension, neurally mediated hypotension NMH , and severe hypotension linked to shock. This type of low blood pressure occurs when standing up from a sitting or lying down position.
It can make you feel dizzy or lightheaded, or even make you faint. This type of low blood pressure usually lasts for only a few seconds or minutes after you stand up. You may need to sit or lie down for a short time while your blood pressure returns to normal. Orthostatic hypotension can occur in all age groups.
It can be a symptom of other medical conditions, and treatment often focuses on treating the underlying condition s. Some people have orthostatic hypotension, but also have high blood pressure when lying down. A form of orthostatic hypotension called postprandial hypotension is a sudden drop in blood pressure after a meal.
This type of low blood pressure mostly affects older adults. As a result, you may feel dizzy, faint, or sick to the stomach. This type of low blood pressure also can occur if you have an unpleasant, upsetting, or scary experience. NMH affects children and young adults more often than people in other age groups. Children often outgrow NMH. Blood pressure drops much lower in shock than in other types of hypotension.
Many factors can cause shock, such as major blood or body gluid loss, certain severe infections, severe burns allergic reactions, and poisoning. The different types of hypotension have different causes. Orthostatic hypotension has many causes. Sometimes two or more factors combine to cause this type of low blood pressure. Dehydration is the most common cause of orthostatic hypotension.
Dehydration occurs when the body loses more water than it takes in. Fever, vomiting, and severe diarrhea also can lead to dehydration. Postprandial hypotension a type of orthostatic hypotension mostly affects older adults. Postprandial hypotension is a sudden drop in blood pressure after a meal.
Some medicines used to treat high blood pressure and heart disease can raise your risk for orthostatic hypotension. These medicines include:. Other substances, when taken with high blood pressure medicines, also can lead to orthostatic hypotension. These substances include alcohol, barbiturates, and some prescription and over-the-counter medicines.
Finally, other factors or conditions that can trigger orthostatic hypotension include being out in the heat or being immobile not being able to move around very much for a long time. For example, when you stand for a long time, blood begins to pool in your legs. This causes your blood pressure to drop. In NHM, the body mistakenly tells the brain that blood pressure is high. In response, the brain slows the heart rate. This makes blood pressure drop even more, causing dizziness and other symptoms.
Many factors and conditions can cause severe hypotension linked to shock. Some of these factors also can cause orthostatic hypotension. Shock is an emergency and must be treated right away. If a person has signs or symptoms of shock, someone should call 9—9—9 right away. Certain severe infections can cause shock. This is known as septic shock. It can occur when bacteria enter the bloodstream. Not eating enough potassium external icon —a mineral that your body needs to work properly—also can increase blood pressure.
Potassium is found in many foods; bananas, potatoes, beans, and yogurt have high levels of potassium. Getting regular physical activity helps your heart and blood vessels stay strong and healthy, which may help lower your blood pressure. Regular physical activity can also help you keep a healthy weight, which may also help lower your blood pressure. Having obesity is having excess body fat. Having obesity or overweight also means your heart must work harder to pump blood and oxygen around your body.
Over time, this can add stress to your heart and blood vessels. Learn more about cholesterol. In addition to high blood pressure, having obesity can also lead to heart disease and diabetes. Talk to your health care team about a plan to reduce your weight to a healthy level.
Tobacco use increases your risk for high blood pressure. Smoking can damage the heart and blood vessels. Nicotine raises blood pressure, and breathing in carbon monoxide—which is produced from smoking tobacco—reduces the amount of oxygen that your blood can carry.
Family members share genes, behaviors, lifestyles, and environments that can influence their health and their risk for disease. High blood pressure can run in a family, and your risk for high blood pressure can increase based on your age and your race or ethnicity.
When members of a family pass traits from one generation to another through genes, that process is called heredity. Genes likely play some role in high blood pressure, heart disease, and other related conditions. However, it is also likely that people with a family history of high blood pressure share common environments and other potential factors that increase their risk.
Read more. Certain combinations of medicine can cause dangerous drops in blood pressure. NHLBI-supported research found that combining a muscle relaxant with other commonly prescribed medicines, including an antibiotic and a medicine for depression, can cause dangerously low blood pressure. Investigating ideal systolic blood pressure for people who have heart failure. NHLBI-funded research found that hospitalized older patients who have heart failure with preserved ejection fraction may not do well with systolic blood pressure readings that are considered healthy in other people.
More research is needed to determine optimal systolic blood pressure targets for these patients. Low blood pressure in children after cardiac arrest is a sign of worse outcomes. Researchers supported by the NHLBI evaluated data on children who were resuscitated after a cardiac arrest. The researchers found that children who had low blood pressure—determined to be below the fifth percentile of systolic blood pressure readings for children of the same sex and age—in the first six hours after cardiac arrest, had a higher risk of serious and life-threatening complications.
Read less. Advancing research for improved health. We fund research. The research we fund today will help improve our future health. Our Division of Cardiovascular Sciences and its Vascular Biology and Hypertension Branch oversee much of the research we fund on the regulation of blood pressure, helping us to understand and treat low blood pressure. The Center for Translation Research and Implementation Science supports research to translate these discoveries into clinical practice. We stimulate high-impact research.
Exploring a new method of blood pressure control for use in surgery. Surgeons often use medicines to control blood pressure during surgery, but the effects can vary from patient to patient and lead to complications.
NHLBI-supported researchers are looking into nerve stimulation as an alternative method for controlling blood pressure during surgery. Investigating ways to prevent low blood pressure and falls in older adults. Dips in blood pressure that happen when standing up can be due to too much high blood pressure medicine. The NHLBI supports research into this complication and the risk of falls, as well as the testing of new strategies to prevent blood pressure from dropping too low.
Do you know someone whose child was just born preterm? This study aims to understand why some premature babies have low blood pressure by studying heart and lung changes during the first week of life in preterm babies who do or do not have low blood pressure. To participate in this study, your newborn must have weighed 2.
This study is located in Houston, Texas. This condition, which has an unknown cause, is characterized by a racing heartbeat, dizziness, lightheadedness, and other symptoms that occur when a person stands up.
To participate in this study, you must be between 18 and 80 years old and have orthostatic intolerance.
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