Vim & Vigor - Fall 2019 - GMC - 6

HEALTHY DOSE BY EMILY FROST

THE PRESSURE IS ON

Hypertension's impact extends far beyond the heart. Read
on to see how it affects your health from head to toe
These days it seems like high blood pressure, or hypertension, is so
common it's practically unavoidable. When nearly 103 million U.S.
adults have hypertension, it seems to be less a question of if you'll
have high blood pressure, and more a question of when you'll have it.
At least you'll know it when you have it, right? Unfortunately, hypertension
often produces no obvious symptoms until it reaches a severe state. That means
it can go unchecked and damage your body for years before being discovered.
That's a scary thought. But what's even scarier, it isn't just your heart that may pay
the price. There are other surprising ways that hypertension can affect your body.

Kidney Health
"Your kidneys are the cornerstone of the renal system," says William Paxton, MD, PhD,
a nephrologist affiliated with Gwinnett Medical Center, "but this means much more
than just aiding in the production and elimination of urine. It means your kidneys
are responsible for filtering waste from your blood. But their ability to function is
dependent on the health of your blood vessels." So what happens when high blood
pressure injures or damages these blood vessels?
* Kidney damage (or chronic kidney disease): The filtration units of the
kidney are called glomeruli, which are made of small bundles of blood vessels. When
damaged, it's difficult for kidneys to remove waste effectively.
* Kidney artery blockage: This is the result of hardening arteries. Over time,
blood vessels become narrower, and may cause a blockage or kidney damage.
* Kidney failure: When kidney scarring is coupled with damage to both of the
arteries leading to your kidneys, the result can be permanent. If kidneys can no longer
effectively filter waste, the waste products build up in your blood, and you can start to
feel sick. This can lead to a need for dialysis to remove the waste.

6

FA L L 2 0 1 9

Brain Health
You've likely heard that high blood
pressure can increase your risk of
stroke-when brain cells die as a
result of being cut off from oxygen
and nutrients-but that's just one risk
of hypertension.
"As the center for thinking,
remembering, moving and feeling, it
makes sense that hypertension may
have an effect on these important
brain functions, too," explains Rizwan
Bashir, MD, a neurologist with Gwinnett
Medical Group (GMG). "When high
blood pressure causes the weakening
and narrowing of arteries, or causes
blockages, it affects blood supply
throughout your body, including the
brain." This can lead to damage, spurring
on cognitive impairment, even dementia.
* Cognitive impairment: This
is a condition in which an individual
may have memory issues, experience
difficulty concentrating or struggle to
make decisions. Oftentimes, this is a
transitional stage between age-related
changes and Alzheimer's.
* Vascular dementia: There are
many factors that contribute to the
development of dementia; however,
impaired blood flow to the brain can
lead to issues with reasoning, planning,
judgment and memory.



Vim & Vigor - Fall 2019 - GMC

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