Hypertension: The Stages of the Disease

There are several stages of hypertension, which is a chronic illness requiring monitoring and medication to control the blood pressure condition. There are few symptoms with this blood pressure condition causing it to often be diagnosed when it is in the advanced stages. There are four stages with hypertension and how quickly or if they occur depends on how high the blood pressure is prior to treatment or when uncontrolled.

The first stage of hypertension is that three out of four people will suffer this stage, often prior to diagnosis and is the less dangerous out of the four stages. This is when the blood pressure reading is between 140/90 and 159/99, this is when the blood pressure can easily be controlled with medication, which can also include diuretics.

The second stage of hypertension is when the blood pressure reading is between 160/100 and 180/110, this is when medication is definitely necessary to prevent heart complications and stroke. This is still able to be maintained with medication to keep the blood pressure in a safe range that is brought down to a safe level as quickly as possible.

The third stage is when the blood pressure is between 180/110 and 210/125, there are only approximately 5 percent of blood pressure patients that will fall into this category. This is a blood pressure reading where the patient will need to be monitored closely, take daily medication and have a restricted diet that will not cause the blood pressure to rise.

The fourth stage is one that is extremely dangerous and requires continuous monitoring, medication and a highly restricted diet. This is also a blood pressure condition that can cause congestive heart failure. The blood pressure reading during the fourth stage is between 210/130 and 240/140. This is not a blood pressure reading that can be ignored and medical help needs to be immediate.