Is hypertension a chronic or acute disease?

Ah, hypertension – the silent killer. The high blood pressure that creeps up on you like your ex at a party. But is it chronic, acute, or just plain confusing? In this article, we will break down everything you need to know about hypertension and whether it falls into the category of chronic or acute diseases.

Defining Hypertension

Before we dive headfirst into answering the question at hand, let’s define what exactly hypertension is in simpler terms than your doctor ever could (okay)!

Hypertension occurs when there is an elevated force against arterial walls present within your body. Your two main numbers for measuring blood pressure are systolic and diastolic; a reading above 140/90 mm Hg indicates high BP.

Fun fact: Did you know that ninety percent of people with high blood pressure don’t know they have issues?

That’s right! So take off those rose-tinted glasses and start paying attention to things other than Netflix.

What classifies as an Acute Disease?

For starters-What does classifying mean? It means characterizing something according to shared qualities for ease/simplicity of understanding.

Now back to acuteness: An acute condition starts rapidly and has severe symptoms from onset till treatment without any episodes in-between once solved which differs from transitioning symptoms that continue over weeks/months/years- such conditions can include pneumonia, appendicitis etcetera

Think about it like standing too close to someone during flu season without getting vaccinated beforehand – boom! You’re hit with an “acute” case of influenza faster than Mona Lisa Vito winning her third Oscar.

And what’s all this talk about Chronic Diseases?

Allow me now also take my school hat students often abhorred(off). It involves…drumroll please(we love drum rolls), lasting three months or worse, recurring over some time. Yup, chronic diseases are ones that last longer and have lingering symptoms compared to acute conditions.

Example: Diabetes is a good example of a chronic disease- an issue which persists even after medical attention for long periods!

(Insert more colorful examples here).

Hypertension Classification

In line with the American Heart Association (AHA), Hypertension falls under two main categories:

1) Primary hypertension: It presents at any age without specific causes;

2) Secondary hypertension: Develops from primary root problems such as kidney disease, arteries leading to the heart, overweight et cetera.

Regardless of if it ventures into classification one or two- it usually goes untreated until crucial stages; symptoms may not always indicate any issues except persistent headaches/fatigue/visual shortcomings. To avoid heading into these detrimental territories seek professional help when experiencing unusual and recurrent occurrences in your health cough like those disturbing headache spells you’ve written off.cough

So… Acute or Chronic?

All right! It’s finally crunch time where we settle this question once and for all – Is hypertension an acute or chronic ailment?

Drum roll please.

The answer is…both!

As much as nobody likes fence-sitting scenarios (like mind-boggling political arguments/The Game Of Thrones’ finale seasons) recognizing the diseased nature in separation isn’t feasible since both classifications revolve around timing.

Hypertension starts sudden establishment/complications such as cardiovascular breakdown/stroke-fits its acute feature while its continued growth causing prolonged damages classifies within ‘chronic.’

This makes it hard not only to manage but treat efficiently without proactivity through medication/diet/lifestyle changes/all three!

## Understanding Risk Factors

Knowing that high blood pressure stems from several underlying conditions grouped together known risk factors becomes easier understanding how dangerous not knowing/solving personal triggers for hypertension can be.

High-Risk Factors of Hypertension includes the following:

  • Drug usage/abuse
  • Genetics
  • Alcohol abuse
  • Saturated fat intake and high sodium intake
  • Age/Gender (More prevalent w/men than women less than 45.)

Why do you think men over the age of fifty are always walking away from their wives’ bickering about something? Hint: They know hypertension is around the corner.

As for diet related factors check your most loved foods to ensure they don’t worsen pre-existing underlying conditions; Marie Callender’s chicken pot pies may taste heavenly but heavy in sugars/fats/sodium thus leading to complications.

Wrapping Up

That was a mouthful! Who knew so much went into defining blood pressure as chronic or acute illnesses?

Remember, regardless of its classification – hypertension is not something to joke about. Left unchecked it could lead to an array of problems ranging from cardiovascular failures/stroke outcomes leading even unto death!

So take ownership now today by checking your BP numbers making sure you’re okay avoiding risks where necessary(that’s right –no more Grey’s Anatomy binge-watching without moving.)

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