Hypertension

Hypertension is persistently elevated arterial blood pressure. Blood pressure is described with a systolic value, the pressure during ventricular contraction, and a diastolic value, the pressure between beats. Hypertension is important as a sustained state rather than as a single momentary rise, because blood pressure naturally varies with activity, stress, sleep, and measurement conditions .¹

Most people with hypertension have no specific symptoms. The condition is identified by blood-pressure measurements; the World Health Organization defines hypertension in adults as systolic blood pressure of 140 mmHg or higher and/or diastolic blood pressure of 90 mmHg or higher when measured on two different days. This distinguishes sustained hypertension from a single isolated elevation .¹

If untreated, hypertension can contribute to serious damage involving the heart, brain, and kidneys. The term itself refers to the sustained blood-pressure abnormality, not to any one of its possible complications .¹