With high blood pressure, some people may experience a low heart rate. Blood pressure (BP) exceeding 140/90 mmHg is considered high and is called hypertension by doctors. This is a fairly common disease among people over 40 years of age. Women are especially susceptible to high blood pressure surges.
Together, both of these conditions - low heart rate and high blood pressure - lead to insufficient blood circulation to brain cells.
This uncomfortable condition can last for a long time, and ultimately leads to impaired blood circulation in the brain, heart and kidney failure.
Chronic high blood pressure leads to:
- stroke;
- myocardial infarction;
- heart failure.
In addition to the above, high blood pressure affects the structure of the retinal blood vessels of the eyes, which leads to visual impairment.
A pulse whose frequency when measured does not exceed 55 beats per minute is considered low and in cardiology is defined as bradycardia.
With a low heart rate, a person experiences a slow heartbeat, weakness, and absent-mindedness. Bradycardia may be accompanied by dizziness, pain in the heart, cold extremities, and sweating. With a slow heart rate, it becomes difficult to breathe. Next, let's try to understand the reasons for determining what needs to be done to effectively treat hypertension with bradycardia.
Reasons for decreased heart rate and increased blood pressure
The reasons that contribute to increased blood pressure and decreased heart rate in humans are:
- hypertonic disease;
- vegetative-vascular dystonia;
- intracardiac blockade;
- malfunction of the sinus node;
- hormonal imbalance;
- uncontrolled physical activity;
- a disorder of the nervous system, such as a stroke.
All of the above reasons for increased blood pressure and decreased heart rate can be either regular or temporary. Also, a condition in which blood pressure increases and heart rate decreases can occur when there is a difference in atmospheric pressure and a change in the ambient temperature. Hypertensive patients – people with high blood pressure – feel this especially sensitively.
Symptoms
Typically, patients who suffer from tachycardia due to hypotension complain that they hear the beat of their heart and can independently count the number of its contractions. They feel chest pain and heaviness in the stomach area, its normal functioning is disrupted. A person suffers from frequent headaches, and dizziness is a common complaint. An increased pulse with low blood pressure is manifested by an unreasonable feeling of anxiety.
Signs of low blood pressure also include:
- drowsiness,
- general weakness and bad mood,
- trembling in the body,
- increased sweating.
With a pronounced decrease in blood pressure, the blood supply to the heart and brain is disrupted. Patients experience nausea, darkening of the eyes and loss of consciousness.
Symptoms of low heart rate and high blood pressure
Symptoms in which the pulse slows and blood pressure rises include the following:
- dizziness;
- headache;
- sweating;
- vomit;
- nausea;
- pain and tingling in the chest area;
- severe weakness;
- fainting;
- lethargy;
- dyspnea;
- noise in ears.
High blood pressure and low heart rate without proper medical care can lead to serious health problems. Blood will not flow in sufficient quantities to all important organs, which will lead to oxygen starvation and lack of nutrients.
Often, a slow pulse and high blood pressure are associated with the wrong choice of drug treatment, or rather self-medication. A competent specialist and a series of tests and examinations prescribed by him can eliminate the cause of the disease.
Causes of high blood pressure with low heart rate
Beta blockers
Beta blockers are a class of drugs that doctors prescribe to treat high blood pressure and reduce the effects of heart failure. Examples of beta blockers:
- Atenolol (Tenormin)
- Metoprolol (Lopressor, Toprol XL)
- Nebivolol (systolic)
- Propranolol (Inderal)
These drugs block beta receptors in the heart. Stimulating the receptors increases the heart rate, while blocking them decreases the heart rate.
A slower heart rate is beneficial for a person who has heart problems because it gives the heart more time to fill up. When the heart beats slower, it requires less oxygen. This puts less strain on the heart, and it “rests.”
Doctors sometimes prescribe beta blockers to people with high blood pressure, congestive heart failure, or cardiac arrhythmia, where the heart beats irregularly. For this reason, a person who already has high blood pressure may have a low heart rate if they take beta blockers.
Doctors may prescribe other drugs to lower blood pressure, including:
- calcium channel blockers
- angiotensin receptor blockers
- angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors
These drugs usually do not affect your heart rate when treating blood pressure.
Cushing's reflex
Cushing's reflex
is a rare condition that causes low heart rate and high blood pressure. The reflex is the result of the body's response to increased intracranial pressure. Intracranial pressure is the pressure inside the head. The brain is located inside the human skull, so if it swells, it only swells as far as it can expand. The resulting swelling causes increased intracranial pressure.
The Cushing reflex is one of the body's ways of trying to keep pressure in the skull from increasing too much. It signals receptors in the heart to slow the heart rate and reduce intracranial pressure.
Severe illnesses are usually manifested by the Cushing's reflex. These diseases include:
- brain tumor
- hypoxia
- meningitis
- stroke
- injury
- cerebral hemorrhage
The Cushing reflex is an emergency. Once doctors identify the condition, their goal is to treat the cause and reduce intracranial pressure in the brain. If the pressure gets too high, it can permanently damage the brain. A person can die from excessively increased intracranial pressure.
Cardiac conduction disorder
A low heart rate can sometimes be an indicator of a problem with the conduction system of the heart. The heart has an electrical system that moves in a specific pattern to keep the heart beating at a regular rhythm. If there is damage, scarring, or strain on the heart, the electrical system may not work as efficiently. This may cause your heart rate to decrease.
Chronic high blood pressure can contribute to damage to the electrical system, which in turn leads to a low heart rate. Other causes of damage include smoking, heavy drug or alcohol use, and aging heart.
A person whose heart rate suddenly slows for an unknown reason should see a doctor. Especially if he feels dizzy or short of breath.
In some cases, a person may need a pacemaker or cardiac ablation to repair damaged electrical pathways in the heart.
Traditional recipes at home
A large number of people attribute this ailment to a temporary imbalance. But this can be done if the increase in pressure and decrease in pulse occurred once. But if this happens regularly, then you need to seek medical help.
If high blood pressure and low heart rate occur due to hypothermia or due to chronic fatigue, then this condition may go away on its own. It is enough to drink hot tea, wrap yourself in a warm blanket and give your body a few days to rest. But if an increased pulse with high blood pressure is associated with improper functioning of the cardiovascular system, then in this case you cannot do without the help of a cardiologist.
What folk remedies can help with high blood pressure and low heart rate at home? Not all remedies can help in this situation, since you can raise your heart rate by doing physical exercise for five minutes. But sports are not always indicated for high blood pressure, because the load can increase the pressure even more.
To lower blood pressure and increase heart rate, the following traditional tincture recipes can help:
- Radish juice with honey. Grate a small radish and squeeze out the juice. Pour into a glass and add 2 tbsp. liquid honey. Stir and let sit for 2 hours. Take 1 tsp. with high blood pressure and low pulse.
- Lemon juice with walnuts. Grind 2 tbsp in a blender. peeled walnuts, transfer to a glass. Add 1 tsp there. sesame oil, 1 tsp. sugar and 2 tsp. lemon juice. Stir. Let it brew for a day and take 1 tsp.
- Motherwort infusion. You can buy dry motherwort herb at the pharmacy, brew it according to the instructions and take it to lower blood pressure and increase heart rate.
- Pine tincture with alcohol. 2 tbsp. pour 200 grams of pine needles. vodka and let it brew for a day. Take 1 tbsp. 2 times a day for high blood pressure and low pulse.
- Wine with honey. In addition to the above-mentioned folk recipes for tinctures, wine boiled with honey helps in such cases. Boil a glass of wine with 1 tbsp. honey Let cool and take 2 tbsp.
Is this condition dangerous and why exactly?
Bradycardia (with a pulse less than 50 beats per minute) is somewhat less dangerous than tachycardia, even without a background of high blood pressure (within 140-160 mm Hg). There are four possible consequences.
Heart failure
Occurs relatively rarely with bradycardia. Usually associated with impaired myocardial conduction or changes in the sinus node. Without resuscitation measures, the little man dies. Help needs to be provided urgently.
Heart failure
Associated with a change in the nature of the body’s activities. There is insufficient tissue trophism and, as a result, the inability to adequately supply the body with nutrients and oxygen.
Hypoxia and atrophy of anatomical structures leads to a lot of symptoms. The myocardium also suffers. In the absence of treatment, the next step in the development of pathology is a heart attack.
Heart attack
Cardiac emergency. Associated with acute malnutrition in the heart muscle and tissue death.
During the recovery period, destroyed tissues are replaced by scar tissue (post-infarction cardiosclerosis), and the nature of cardiac activity changes. The consequences remain with a person for life.
Morgagni-Adams-Stokes syndrome
A sharp disturbance in cardiac output as a result of a decrease in heart rate. Accompanied by acute ischemia of cerebral circulation. One of the most dangerous complications of bradycardia. Requires cardiac surgery. Read more about MAS syndrome here.
In addition, the condition is accompanied by unpleasant symptoms, such as decreased performance, constant drowsiness, chest pain, dizziness, etc. So, if your blood pressure is high and your pulse is low, it is a risk. Treatment is needed.
What medications to take and drink
To determine the reasons for the deviation of pulse and pressure, the patient must undergo 4 examinations:
- Ultrasound of the heart.
- Electrocardiogram.
- Blood test for thyroid hormones.
- Daily monitoring of ECG and blood pressure (preferably using one device, that is, bifunctional).
Treatment of hypertension with bradycardia has its own characteristics. The doctor selects medications that can increase pulse and reduce blood pressure, taking into account their effect on the heart individually for each person.
The 3 most commonly used groups of drugs for the treatment of hypertension simultaneously with bradycardia:
- ACE inhibitors – reduce high blood pressure without affecting heart rate.
- Sartans - have a similar effect to ACE inhibitors, often indicated if they are intolerable or insufficiently effective
- Calcium antagonists of the amlodipine series can not only help normalize blood pressure, but in some cases also increase heart rate.
If your heart rate is low, you should avoid using drugs from the group of beta-blockers, as they further reduce heart rate.
And in conclusion, I would like to give a number of general recommendations for people with high blood pressure and low heart rate:
- Measure your pulse and blood pressure frequently and take immediate action if changes occur.
- Try to isolate yourself as much as possible from any stressful situations that negatively affect the cardiovascular system and the entire body.
- Do not skip taking medications prescribed by your doctor.
- Lead a moderately active lifestyle. Eat only high-quality food and spend more time in the fresh air.
General facts about the disease
High blood pressure is one of the most common dysfunctions of the cardiovascular system. It occurs not only in older people. Problems with nutrition, frequent stressful situations, and physical overload are fraught with increased blood pressure.
The human body is a rather complex system and many functions are closely interconnected. Blood pressure is a kind of indicator of the efficiency of blood flow through the vessels of the circulatory system. Therefore, the body tries to constantly maintain a constant average. It is also called “working pressure”. With an average of 120/80, high blood pressure is considered to be 140/90 or higher.
Low pulse in medicine is stated when the heart rate drops below 60 beats per minute.
Interestingly, in most people, when blood pressure increases, the pulse also increases. But sometimes doctors also note another clinical picture - high blood pressure, low pulse, shortness of breath.
If what happened is an isolated incident, then there is no need to panic. However, if such a situation appears several times during the day, then this may signal a developing pathology. The biggest danger is lack of blood circulation in the brain and other vital organs, heart attack, pulmonary edema, and death.
In older people, the vessels of the circulatory system do not maintain their own tone well, so this phenomenon, which often appears, necessitates immediate diagnosis.
List of necessary examinations for bradycardia due to hypertension
Both the heart and blood vessels are examined. There can be many factors in the development of processes. First of all, you should contact a cardiologist.
If necessary, he will refer the patient to a neurologist or endocrinologist. The complexity and duration of the examination depends on the nature of the disease and the complexity of the situation.
In general, the list of studies looks like this:
- Initial consultation, conversation with the collection of characteristic complaints and anamnestic data. Plays a big role, this is the first step in identifying the root cause of the condition.
- Studying heart rhythm using a stethoscope or automatic blood pressure monitor.
- Measuring blood pressure levels. Required in all cases.
- Daily monitoring using an automatic Holter monitor.
- Electrocardiography with the study of the nature of the heart rhythm and its frequency.
- Study of myocardial conductivity using the introduction of a special sensor. An invasive but informative procedure.
- Assessment of the concentration of hormones of the pituitary gland, adrenal glands and thyroid gland.
- Examination of neurological status.
A complete list of events is required. At the discretion of the doctor, the list may change.
