Symptoms of Hypertension

Symptoms of Hypertension: Introduction

Most people are not aware that they have high blood pressure because of a general lack of symptoms until major complications arise. Some people may however, have headaches or nosebleeds, but these are rare symptoms. Because of this lack of symptoms, regular medical care is vital to monitoring blood pressure and promptly treating high blood pressure if it occurs before serious complications result.

Symptoms of Hypertension

The list of signs and symptoms mentioned in various sources for Hypertension includes the 32 symptoms listed below:

• No symptoms - many people are unaware they have hypertension until it is accidentally found at a doctor visit or they develop complications of hypertension
• Non-specific symptoms - symptoms of hypertension may be mild and vague
• Headache
• Morning headache
• Tinnitus - ringing or buzzing in ears
• Dizziness
• Confusion
• Papilloedema
• Many symptoms occur from complications of hypertension
  • See symptoms of heart disease
  • See symptoms of heart failure
• High blood pressure
• Usually asymptomatic
• Fatigue
• Shortness of breath
• Convulsion
• Changes in vision
• Nausea
• Vomiting
• Anxiety
• Increased sweating
• Nose bleeds
• Heart palpitations
• General feeling of unwellness
• Increased urination frequency
• Blurred vision
• Double vision
• Flushed face
• Pale skin
• Red skin
• Chest pains
• Very high blood pressure
• more information...»

Research symptoms & diagnosis of Hypertension:

• Overview -- Hypertension
• Diagnostic Tests for Hypertension
• Home Diagnostic Testing
• Complications -- Hypertension
• Doctors & Specialists
• Misdiagnosis and Alternative Diagnoses
• Hidden Causes of Hypertension
• Other Causes -- causes of these or similar symptoms

Hypertension: Complications

Review medical complications possibly associated with Hypertension:

• Kidney disease
• Kidney failure (type of Kidney disease) - hypertension is the second most common cause of kidney failure (after diabetes)
• End-stage renal disease
• Heart disease
• more complications...»

Diagnostic Testing

Diagnostic testing of medical conditions related to Hypertension:

• Sphygmomanometer (arm cuff blood pressure test)
• Home blood pressure tests
• Finger cuff blood pressure test
• more tests...»

Research More About Hypertension

Do I have Hypertension?

• Hypertension: Introduction
• Hypertension: Diagnostic Testing to confirm diagnosis
• Home Diagnostic Testing
• Alternative diagnoses and misdiagnosis for Hypertension
• Failure to Diagnose Hypertension
• Hidden Causes of Hypertension
• How serious is it?
• Treatments for Hypertension
• More about Hypertension

Hypertension: Medical Mistakes

• Hypertension -- Health Mistakes
• Cholesterol -- Health Mistakes
• Obesity -- Health Mistakes
• Diabetes -- Health Mistakes
• Metabolic Syndrome -- Health Mistakes
• more mistakes...»

Hypertension: Undiagnosed Conditions

Diseases that may be commonly undiagnosed in related medical areas:

• Chronic Major Diseases that are commonly Undiagnosed:
  • High Cholesterol -- Undiagnosed
  • Heart Disease -- Undiagnosed
  • Cancer -- Undiagnosed
  • Depression -- Undiagnosed
  • Type 2 Diabetes -- Undiagnosed
  • Type 1 Diabetes -- Undiagnosed
  • Hypertension -- Undiagnosed
  • Hemochromatosis -- Undiagnosed
  • Metabolic Syndrome -- Undiagnosed
• more undiagnosed conditions...»

Home Diagnostic Testing

Home medical tests related to Hypertension:

• High Cholesterol: Home Testing:
  • Home Cholesterol Tests
  • Home Triglycerides Tests
  • Home Blood Pressure Test Devices
• High Blood Pressure: Home Testing
  • Home Blood Pressure Hypertension Tests
  • Home Blood Pressure Monitors
  • Home Heart Tests
• Heart Health: Home Testing:
  • Heart Rate Monitors
  • Irregular Heartbeat Detection
  • Heart Electrocardiogram (ECG)
  • Home Blood Pressure Testing
  • Home Cholesterol Testing
• Fatigue: Related Home Tests:
  • Home Anemia Tests
  • Home Thyroid Gland Function Tests
  • Home Adrenal Gland Function Tests
  • Home Calcium Deficiency Tests
  • Sleep Apnea Testing
  • Home HIV Tests
• Home Anemia Diagnostic Tests
• Diet & Weight Loss: Home Testing:
  • Home Weight Testing
  • Home Body Fat Testing (BMI)
  • Home Body Fat Monitoring
  • Home Fitness Testing
• Diabetes: Related Home Testing:
  • Home Diabetes Testing
  • Home Blood Glucose Test Kits
  • Home Urine Glucose Tests
  • Home Urine Ketone Tests
  • Home Diabetes HbA1c Tests
  • Home Microalbumin Tests (Kidney)
  • Home Urine Protein Tests (Kidney)
  • Home Kidney Health Tests
  • Home Eye Health Tests
• more home tests...»

Wrongly Diagnosed with Hypertension?

The list of other diseases or medical conditions that may be on the differential diagnosis list of alternative diagnoses for Hypertension includes:

• Essential hypertension
• Primary hyperaldosteronism
• Cushing's syndrome
• Phaeochromocytoma
• Chronic renal disease
• more diagnoses...»

See the full list of 26 alternative diagnoses for Hypertension

Hypertension: Research Doctors & Specialists

• Cholesterol Specialists:
  • Clinical Lipidology (Cholesterol/Triglycerides)
  • Diabetes, Endocrinology & Metabolism
• Cardiac (Heart) Specialists:
  • Cardiology (Heart specialists)
  • Pediatric Cardiology (Child Heart Specialists)
  • Cardiothoracic Surgery
  • Clinical Cardiac Electrophysiology
  • Interventional Cardiology
• Blood Health Specialists (Hematology):
  • Hematology (Blood Specialists)
  • Pediatric Hematology / Oncology (Child Cancer/Leukemia)
  • Hematopathology (Blood Diagnostics)
• more specialists...»

Research all specialists including ratings, affiliations, and sanctions.

More about symptoms of Hypertension:

More information about symptoms of Hypertension and related conditions:

• Other diseases with similar symptoms and common misdiagnoses
• Tests to determine if these are the symptoms of Hypertension
• Symptoms that may be caused by complications of Hypertension
• Underlying causes of Hypertension
• Associated conditions for Hypertension
• Risk factors for Hypertension

Other Possible Causes of these Symptoms

Click on any of the symptoms below to see a full list of other causes including diseases, medical conditions, toxins, drug interactions, or drug side effect causes of that symptom.

• Anxiety - see all causes of Anxiety
• Blurred vision - see all causes of Blurred vision
• Changes in vision - see all causes of Vision changes
• Chest pains - see all causes of Chest pains
• Confusion - see all causes of Confusion
• Dizziness - see all causes of Dizziness
• Double vision - see all causes of Double vision
• Fatigue - see all causes of Fatigue
• Flushed face - see all causes of Flushing
• Headache - see all causes of Headache
• Heart palpitations - see all causes of Palpitations
• High blood pressure - see all causes of High blood pressure
• Increased sweating - see all causes of Increased sweating
• Morning headache - see all causes of Headache
• Nausea - see all causes of Nausea
• No symptoms - see all causes of No symptoms
• Non-specific symptoms - see all causes of Vague symptoms
• Nose bleeds - see all causes of Nose bleeds
• Pale skin - see all causes of Paleness
• Papilloedema - see all causes of Papilloedema
• Red skin - see all causes of Red skin
• Shortness of breath - see all causes of Shortness of breath
• Tinnitus - see all causes of Tinnitus
• Vomiting - see all causes of Vomiting

Medical Books Online about Hypertension

Medical Books Excerpts Excerpts of published medical book chapters related to Hypertension are available from published medical books for more detailed information about Hypertension.

Copyright notice for book excerpts: Copyright © 2008 Lippincott Williams & Wilkins. All rights reserved.

Related videos for Hypertension

Patient Surveys for Hypertension

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Symptoms of Hypertension: Online Medical Books

16 MEDICAL BOOKS ONLINE! Review excerpts from medical books online, free, without registration, for more information about the symptoms of Hypertension.

Hypertension: Signs and symptoms
(Professional Guide to Diseases (Eighth Edition))

Hypertension usually doesn’t produce clinical effects until vascular changes in the heart, brain, or kidneys occur. Severely elevated blood pressure damages the intima of small vessels, resulting in fibrin accumulation in the vessels, development of local edema and, possibly, intravascular clotting. Symptoms produced by this process depend on the location of the damaged vessels:

❑ brain — stroke

❑ retina — blindness

❑ heart — myocardial infarction

❑ kidneys — proteinuria, edema and, eventually, renal failure.

Hypertension increases the heart’s workload, causing left ventricular hypertrophy and, later, left- and right-sided heart failure and pulmonary edema.

» READ BOOK EXCERPT ONLINE »

Source: Professional Guide to Diseases (Eighth Edition), 2005

Hypertensive crisis: Signs and Symptoms
(Professional Guide to Diseases (Eighth Edition))

Hypertension, papilledema, retinal hemorrhages and exudate, severe headache, vomiting, vision disturbances, transient paralysis, seizures, stupor, coma

» READ BOOK EXCERPT ONLINE »

Source: Professional Guide to Diseases (Eighth Edition), 2005

Renovascular hypertension: Signs and symptoms
(Professional Guide to Diseases (Eighth Edition))

In addition to elevated systemic blood pressure, renovascular hypertension usually produces symptoms common to hypertensive states, such as headache, palpitations, tachycardia, anxiety, light-headedness, decreased tolerance of temperature extremes, retinopathy, and mental sluggishness. Significant complications include heart failure, myocardial infarction, stroke and, occasionally, renal failure.

» READ BOOK EXCERPT ONLINE »

Source: Professional Guide to Diseases (Eighth Edition), 2005

Pregnancy-induced hypertension: Signs and symptoms
(Professional Guide to Diseases (Eighth Edition))

Mild preeclampsia generally produces the following clinical effects: hypertension, proteinuria (less than 5 g/24 hours), generalized edema, and sudden weight gain of more than 3 lb (1.4 kg) per week during the second trimester or more than 1 lb (0.5 kg) a week during the third trimester.

Severe preeclampsia is marked by increased hypertension and proteinuria, eventually leading to the development of oliguria. Hemolysis, elevated liver enzymes, and low platelets (the HELLP syndrome) is a severe variant. Other symptoms that may indicate worsening preeclampsia include blurred vision due to retinal arteriolar spasms, epigastric pain or heartburn, and severe frontal headache.

In eclampsia, all the clinical manifestations of preeclampsia are magnified and are associated with seizures and, possibly, coma, premature labor, stillbirth, renal failure, and hepatic damage.

» READ BOOK EXCERPT ONLINE »

Source: Professional Guide to Diseases (Eighth Edition), 2005

Pulmonary hypertension: Signs and symptoms
(Professional Guide to Diseases (Eighth Edition))

Most patients complain of increasing dyspnea on exertion, weakness, syncope, and fatigability. Many also show signs of right-sided heart failure, including peripheral edema, ascites, jugular vein distention, and hepatomegaly. Other clinical effects vary with the underlying disorder.

» READ BOOK EXCERPT ONLINE »

Source: Professional Guide to Diseases (Eighth Edition), 2005

Hypertension: Signs and symptoms
(Handbook of Diseases)

Hypertension usually doesn’t produce clinical effects until vascular changes in the heart, brain, or kidneys occur. Highly elevated blood pressure damages the intima of small vessels, resulting in fibrin accumulation in the vessels, development of local edema and, possibly, intravascular clotting.

Symptoms produced by this process depend on the location of the damaged vessels:

❑ brain: stroke

❑ retina: blindness

❑ heart: MI

❑ kidneys: proteinuria, edema and, eventually, renal failure.

Hypertension increases the heart’s workload, causing left ventricular hypertrophy and, later, left- and right-sided heart failure, and pulmonary edema.

» READ BOOK EXCERPT ONLINE »

Source: Handbook of Diseases, 2003

Hypertension, pregnancy-induced: Signs and symptoms
(Handbook of Diseases)

❑ Mild preeclampsia generally produces the following signs: hypertension, proteinuria, generalized edema, and a sudden weight gain of more than 3 lb (1.4 kg) a week during the second trimester or more than 1 lb (0.5 kg) a week during the third trimester.

❑ Severe preeclampsia is marked by increased hypertension and proteinuria, which eventually lead to the development of oliguria. Hemolysis, elevated liver enzyme levels, and a low platelet count (the HELLP syndrome) is commonly severe.

Clinical tip  A daughter whose mother had toxemia is at high risk for developing HELLP syndrome with a new pregnancy.

Other symptoms that indicate worsening preeclampsia include blurred vision due to retinal arteriolar spasms, epigastric pain or heartburn, irritability, emotional tension, and severe frontal headache.

❑ In eclampsia, all the clinical manifestations of preeclampsia are magnified and associated with seizures and possibly coma, premature labor, stillbirth, renal failure, and liver damage.

» READ BOOK EXCERPT ONLINE »

Source: Handbook of Diseases, 2003

Pulmonary hypertension: Signs and symptoms
(Handbook of Diseases)

Most patients complain of increasing dyspnea on exertion, weakness, syncope, and fatigability. Many also show signs of right-sided heart failure, including peripheral edema, ascites, jugular vein distention, and hepato-megaly. Other clinical features vary according to the underlying disorder.

» READ BOOK EXCERPT ONLINE »

Source: Handbook of Diseases, 2003

Hypertension: Hypertension - signs & symptoms
(The 5-Minute Pediatric Consult)

• Hypertensive emergency: Severely elevated BP with evidence of target organ injury (encephalopathy, seizures, renal damage)
• Hypertensive urgency: Severely elevated BP with no evidence of secondary organ damage

» READ BOOK EXCERPT ONLINE »

Source: The 5-Minute Pediatric Consult, 2008

Article Excerpts About Symptoms of Hypertension:

High Blood Pressure and Kidney Disease: NIDDK (Excerpt)

Most people with high blood pressure have no symptoms. The only way to know whether your blood pressure is high is to have a health professional measure it. (Source: excerpt from High Blood Pressure and Kidney Disease: NIDDK)

Heart Disease & Women Controlling High Blood Pressure A Woman's Guide: NHLBI (Excerpt)

If you do not know your blood pressure, you should have it taken. Those with high blood pressure often do not feel sick. In fact, high blood pressure is often called "the silent killer," because it may cause no symptoms for a long time. (Source: excerpt from Heart Disease & Women Controlling High Blood Pressure A Woman's Guide: NHLBI)

Hypertension as a Cause of Symptoms or Medical Conditions

When considering symptoms of Hypertension, it is also important to consider Hypertension as a possible cause of other medical conditions. The Disease Database lists the following medical conditions that Hypertension may cause:

• Alanine transaminase levels raised (plasma or serum) - preeclampsia
• Atrial fibrillation
• Cardiac failure, left sided
• Cerebrovascular accident - preeclampsia
• Disseminated intravascular coagulation - preeclampsia
• Epistaxis
• Fourth heart sound
• Headache - preeclampsia
• Hepatocellular jaundice - preeclampsia
• Hyperkalaemic distal renal tubular acidosis
• Hypertension, systemic - preeclampsia
• Intrauterine death - preeclampsia
• Intrauterine growth retardation - preeclampsia
• Left bundle branch block
• Left ventricular hypertrophy
• Maternal mortality - preeclampsia
• Oedema - preeclampsia
• Oligohydramnios - preeclampsia
• Perinatal morbidity - preeclampsia
• Premature labour & delivery - preeclampsia
• Proteinuria - preeclampsia
• Renal failure
• Renal failure, acute - preeclampsia
• Renal failure, chronic
• Retinal microaneurysms
• Retinal pathology
• Right bundle branch block
• Small placenta - preeclampsia
• Thrombocytopenia - preeclampsia
• Uric acid levels raised (plasma or serum) - preeclampsia

Medical articles and books on symptoms:

These general reference articles may be of interest in relation to medical signs and symptoms of disease in general:

• Diagnostic Testing for a Diagnosis of Hypertension
• Research Alternative Diagnoses for Hypertension
• How serious is Hypertension?
• More about Hypertension
• Online Diagnosis
• Self Diagnosis Pitfalls
• Pitfalls of Online Diagnosis
• Symptoms of the Silent Killer Diseases
• Lesser known silent killer diseases
• Books on signs and symptoms

Full list of premium articles on symptoms and diagnosis

About signs and symptoms of Hypertension:

The symptom information on this page attempts to provide a list of some possible signs and symptoms of Hypertension. This signs and symptoms information for Hypertension has been gathered from various sources, may not be fully accurate, and may not be the full list of Hypertension signs or Hypertension symptoms. Furthermore, signs and symptoms of Hypertension may vary on an individual basis for each patient. Only your doctor can provide adequate diagnosis of any signs or symptoms and whether they are indeed Hypertension symptoms.