Malignant Hypertenion is a very rare case of sever high blood pressure, in which high blood pressure is accompanied by internal bleeding of the retinas in both eyes and swelling of optic nerves behind the retinas. Malignant hypertension can cause severe organ damage and possibly death and hence one should get serious medical attention as soon as possible.
Almost all body organs tend to be affected by malignant hypertension but the organs that are most prone to damage are the kidneys, the eyes and the brain. Since Kidneys are directly affected by high blood pressure hence, permanent kidney damage is one of the serious complications of malignant hypertension.
Organ damage is done in the form of cell ruptures which result in kidney failure and in case of eyes, retinal bleeding and hence forms one of the diagnostic criteria for malignant hypertension.
What Causes Malignant hypertension?
Since Malignant hypertension is a derivative of high blood pressure, hence similarly no single factor has been established which may lead to malignant hypertension. But we do have researched out some facts that might reflect some light on the probability of someone suffering from malignant hypertension and we have listed them below:
- Young adults are at a higher risk of suffering from malignant hypertension in comparison to older people.
- People with African origin are more prone to malignant hypertension.
- People who have already suffered from “renal artery stenosis” and/or kidney failure is at a higher risk to get malignant hypertension.
- Pregnant women or women expecting pregnancy are also prone to this kind of hypertension.
But the good news is that malignant hypertension is a very rare disease and just 1% of the people suffering from high blood pressure actually tend to suffer from malignant hypertension.
What are the Symptoms of Malignant Hypertension?
Since this disease affects most of the organs that are sensitive to blood pressure like eyes, kidneys, brain and vasco-muscular organs, hence following can be taken as the observable symptoms of malignant hypertension.
- Blurry vision
- Chest pain
- Seizure
- Decreased urine output
- Weakness or strange tingling/numbness in the arms, legs, or face
- Headache
- Shortness of breath
Well, it is not necessary that these symptoms are exclusive to malignant hypertension or something but as per the researches a person suffering from malignant hypertension may experience one or more of the above ailments and if you’re one of them, it is advised to get diagnosed immediately.
How is Malignant Hypertension Treated?
If you’re suffering from malignant hypertension then it is highly recommended to get admitted in a hospital to ensure consistent medical attention. If the condition get serious its advised to get admitted in a Intensive Care Unit(ICU). While admitted in the hospital, the treatment would be done most probably via intravenous medications.
Drugs like nitroprusside and nitroglycerin may also be given as they are pretty effective against high blood pressure.
As per precautionary methods, a lot of blood tests might be carried out time to time in order to ensure correct functioning of kidneys, brain and other organs which are prone to be damaged.
Once treated, the patient might be prescribed to take medication like beta blockers or ACE inhibitors to keep the blood pressure under control in the future.