pulse pressure

[GrannyE]

At times I have a high pulse pressure. (Big difference between systolic and diastolic) I have listened to Sanjay Gupta’s excellent clear talk on it which has made me anxious. Has anyone else had experience of this and have they found anything to help?

[jeanjeannie50]

Ideal blood pressure according to medics is 120/80, but as we grow older a little higher is considered normal. What is your BP?

I can reduce my blood pressure quickly by taking a deep breath in and then breathing out quickly through the mouth with a huh, repeat this just a few times and then check your BP again. Don't try it for too long or it could make your BP drop too low. Anxiety makes my BP go sky high as I guess it may well do for everyone.

It's important to try to lead a calm life and get out into the fresh air as often as you can. Walking in the countryside can be very calming.

Jean

[GrannyE in reply to jeanjeannie50]

Thanks for replying. My bp can vary wildly in about 15mins. I too take deep breaths in and breathe out quickly through mouth. Also sniff essential essential oil of lavender and chamomile or put a drop or two of diluted oils on my wrists. Golf and gardening and supplements but bad ankle and lower back not that jolly and restricting. This morning took a number of readings sitting down within 15mins best 132/67 worst 145/65. Bp always lower in the morning. At the moment taking 2mg candesartan daily. Have just had my 80th birthday.

[jeanjeannie50 in reply to GrannyE]

BP changes for all of us all the time depending on what we are doing, or whether we are anxious. I'm not medically trained but I would be happy with your results. My diastolic has always been lowish and usually in the 60's. Like Hidden I don't worry about it.

[Chappychap]

This is an interesting one.

I discussed this with a cardiologist and was surprised to discover that it's only recently that pulse pressure has started to be seriously researched, so recently in fact that there's actually very little in the way of conclusive evidence.

I was astonished as the data is cheap to collect and has been widely available for many, many years. What's more it used to be diastolic pressure that was considered the more significant risk indicator, where as now it's systolic. Indeed it's only systolic that's used in the QRisk formula that your GP will use to help decide on your medication and if you need to be referred to a heart specialist.

I guess it illustrates just how dynamic heart science really is. Just as the treatment we get now is far superior to the treatment our parents received, so the treatment our children will get will be that much better again.

Anyhow, my pulse pressure is also larger than I'd like. This will be true for many people on this forum as high pulse pressure seems to be an inevitable by-product of the reduced arterial elasticity that comes with atherosclerosis.

However, there are still at least two things that we can do about it.

Firstly, fluid retention increases pulse pressure. Personally I find that a low salt diet materially reduces my systolic score and therefore my pulse pressure.

Secondly, the evidence suggests that Ramipril also does a pretty good job of reducing (reducing, not eliminating) excessive pulse pressure. I appreciate that Ramipril has a difficult reputation, and many people find the "Ramipril cough" irritating. However, it seems to have two very useful extra benefits, firstly it reduces pulse pressure, and secondly it seems to turbo charge the statin effect of stabilising plaque.

Food for thought.

Good luck!

[GrannyE in reply to Chappychap]

thank you for that. As you know I am on apixaban. I was on Ramipril to start with but I don’t think it suited me.

[GrannyE in reply to Chappychap]

my husband is on a no salt diet because of stage 5 kidney and so I have very little salt and what salt I do have is pink Himalayan or sometimes sea salt. I have relatively little food which is not cooked from scratch. Thanks