Malignant hypertension is blood pressure that is so high that it can harm the body. It can be deadly and needs to be treated right away.
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This problem can happen when high blood pressure is not managed with medicine. Some other problems that may lead to it are:
This problem is more common in older adults, especially men. It is also more common in people who are Black. Other things that may raise the risk are:
Some people may not have symptoms. Others may have:
The doctor will ask about your symptoms and health history. A physical exam will be done. Blood pressure readings will be taken.
These tests may be done to look for damage in the body:
This problem needs to be treated right away. Options depend on the damage that has happened.
Medicine will be given to lower blood pressure. It may be given by IV. This lets the medicine quickly lower blood pressure. Options are:
A care plan will be made to keep blood pressure at a healthy level. Medicine will need to be part of it.
People with high blood pressure can lower the chance of this problem by checking their blood pressure often and taking medicine to lower it.
American Heart Association
http://www.heart.org
National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute
http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov
Hypertension Canada
http://www.hypertension.ca
Society of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists of Canada
https://sogc.org
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Hypertensive crisis. EBSCO DynaMed website. Available at: https://www.dynamed.com/condition/hypertensive-crisis. Updated April 17, 2019. Accessed December 3, 2019.
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Varounis C, Katsi V, et al. Cardiovascular Hypertensive Crisis: Recent Evidence and Review of the Literature. Front Cardiovasc Med. 2016;3:51.
Williams B, Mancia G, et al. 2018 ESC/ESH Guidelines for the management of arterial hypertension. Eur Heart J. 2018 Sep 1;39(33);3021-3104.
Last reviewed September 2019 by EBSCO Medical Review Board James P. Cornell, MD