Blood pressure is the amount of force your body uses to push your blood against the walls of your heart’s arteries. Every time your heart takes a beats, it transports blood into your arteries. Pulmonary hypertension is a high blood pressure condition affecting the right side of your heart and lungs’ arteries. Pulmonary hypertension has many forms with various signs. Some forms of the the condition are pulmonary arterial hypertension, pulmonary hypertension caused by left-sided heart disease, pulmonary hypertension caused by lung disease and pulmonary hypertension caused by chronic blood clots.
Regardless of the form of pulmonary hypertension you have, your blood pressure condition progressively worsens. They can sometimes be fatal. Pulmonary hypertension is not curable. Treatment can help improve the quality of your life. Risk factors involving pulmonary hypertension includes being overweight, family history of the disease, taking illegal drugs and appetite suppression medication.
1. Chest pain
Chest pain is discomfort that occurs in one or more areas of your chest. The pain varies from a dull ache to sharp, intense pain. It may feel like your chest is burning. The pain does not always stay in your chest. It may travel from your chest to your jaw, neck or radiate up and down your arms. Symptoms of pain in your chest depends on what triggered the pain. Typically, the pain has nothing to do with your heart. If the chest pain is associated with your heart, symptoms include feeling a crushing pain in your shoulders, back, neck, jaw and arms. You may experience cold sweats and pressure in your chest.
The pain in your chest is not a disorder or disease. It is a sign that you may have a medical disorder or disease. The causes of pain in your chest includes having a heart attack, angina, pericarditis and aortic dissections. You may experience pain in your chest because you have a panic attack or shingles. Treatments such as blood thinners, aspirin and thrombolytic drugs vary depending on what caused the pain in your chest. Some of the most serious types of chest pain may include surgery such as dissection repair and bypass surgery.
2. Dizziness
Dizziness is feeling disoriented, lightheadedness or being unsteady. Dizziness changes how you perceive your surroundings. You may feel that your environment is shifting or spinning around. You may also experience vertigo. Vertigo occurs when your feel like you are spinning. You may feel like you are woozy, floating or swaying. This feeling may not be relieved by lying down or standing still. Dizziness is not a disease or a disorder, but one of the signs that you are suffering from an underlying medical condition. The treatment for this symptom depends on what is causing the dizzy feeling such as pulmonary hypertension.
3. Fatigue
When you feel an unrelenting exhaustion that does not go away with rest or long periods of sleep, you are experiencing fatigue. The symptom is not temporary, but long term. In addition to feeling so tired, you also may become weary. Over time, your energy may be reduced. Motivation may go away. Your ability to concentrate is diminished. Fatigue is not a disease or a disorder. It can be traced by lifestyle factors or disease. For instance, lifestyle habits such as excess physical activity, medication, unhealthy eating and lack of sleep can induce unrelenting exhaustion. Medical conditions also contribute to unrelenting exhaustion like pulmonary hypertension, cancer or acute liver failure.
4. Inability to exercise
An inability to exercise occurs when you no longer are able to perform a normal level of exercise. This inability is different than feeling you cannot complete an exercise. It occurs after exercising. You may experience symptoms like unrelenting exhaustion, pain, feeling the need to throw up or actually throwing up. The inability to exercise may be caused by various things like muscle pain, unusual breathlessness, rapid breathing or headache. Some disease and disorders also cause an inability to exercise like respiratory disorders, post-concussion syndrome and pulmonary hypertension.
5. Low blood pressure
Low blood pressure occurs when parts of your body such as your brain and heart do not receive enough blood because your blood pressure is too low. This is called hypotension. A normal blood pressure rate ranges from 90/60 mmHg to 120/80 mmHg. A drop in blood pressure as little as 20 mmHg can cause symptoms such as vertigo and dizziness. Causes of hypotension varies from standing too fast and age to low blood sugar levels. Low blood pressure is a medical condition caused by underlying medical conditions.
6. Chest pressure
Chest pressure is described as a tightness in your chest. The pressure may feel like something is sitting on your chest. In addition, you may experience a sensation that something is squeezing your chest. Another symptom may include experiencing indigestion, or gas in your chest. The chest pressure is discomfort occurs because your heart muscle cannot not get enough oxygen. Chest pain is not a medical condition or disease. It is one of the signs that you have an underlying condition such as pulmonary hypertension.
7. Chronic cough
A cough is your body’s way to clear something irritating your airway or throat. Your brain tells your chest muscles and stomach to push air from your lungs to force the irritant out of your body. This is a normal process. However, a cough lasting more than eight weeks is considered chronic. A chronic cough is persistent and can be caused by asthma, smoking, post-nasal drip or infection. Symptoms of a chronic cough include hoarseness, stuffy or runny nose and shortness of breath. Treatment for this symptom depends on the underlying cause of cough. Some common treatments include acid blockers, inhaled asthma drugs, antibiotics or antihistamines.
8. Fast heart rate
Your heart rate normally beats around 60 to 100 beats per minute when you are at rest. Your heart rate increases when you are doing physical activity. When your body is at rest and your heart rate increases for no reason, it is called tachycardia. Tachycardia is an increased heart rate. The fast heart rate is a symptom of an underlying cause such as pulmonary hypertension. Signs of a fast heart rate include a rapid pulse rate, pain in your chest, fainting and shortness of breath.
9. Swollen legs
Leg swelling is the result of fluid buildup, or fluid retention. It can also be caused from inflammation in your joints or tissues. Swollen legs can include retention or inflammation in your feet, thighs, calves and ankles. The cause of your leg swelling can occur because of prolonged sitting or injury. It can also occur because of a medical condition such as a blood clot or heart disease.
