Labile Hypertension

Hypertension is any kind of chronic rise in blood pressure. There are certain limits beyond which a person is said to be hypertensive. However, when this rise in blood pressure is characterized by repeated, but sudden fluctuations of varying degrees, it is known as labile hypertension. At times, the blood pressure may rise from 140/90 mm of Hg to 170/100 mm of Hg. This may or may not occur due to a known trigger factor, which is what makes this condition so dangerous.

The cause of this condition is variable. One of the most commonly implicated causes is stress. It is often seen that people who are under excessive stress tend to get unpredictable spurts in their blood pressure. Labile hypertension is also often associated with pheochromocytoma, which is a rare tumor of the adrenal gland.

Other causes include anxiety attacks, excessive consumption of caffeine, salt sensitivity, etc. There can be many different triggers, more than one of which may even act simultaneously!

Symptoms include headache, ringing in ears (tinnitus), etc. The person normally does not feel heart palpitations. At times, labile hypertension may even be asymptomatic, i.e., it may not give rise to any visible or palpable symptoms. This is when it is the most harmful, as it could silently be causing damage to vital organs without the person actually realizing it.

The treatment of this condition is not easy, as at times, this kind of hypertension does not respond to prescribed medications. Thus, the treatment depends on the cause of fluctuation and the resultant pulse readings. So, for people suffering from stress, appropriate measures for stress relief need to be taken. Thus, due to the unpredictable nature of this ailment, prevention is the best cure. Individuals need to figure out the exact cause, and try to keep it at bay.

So some simple measures of relieving oneself from labile high blood pressure include:

• Managing stress
• Reducing the intake of salts in the diet
• Losing weight if one is obese
• Quitting smoking and abstaining from excessive intake of alcohol
• Regularly exercising and leading a generally healthy lifestyle