Hypertension
Definition
Hypertension is the medical name for high blood pressure.
Description
The circulatory system is the network of organs and blood vessels through which blood travels in the body. Blood is pumped out of the heart into blood vessels known as arteries. After passing through the body, blood returns to the heart by way of blood vessels known as veins.
As blood flows through arteries and veins, it pushes on their walls. Blood pressure is defined as the force exerted by blood inside arteries.
Blood does not flow steadily through the circulatory system. At one moment, the heart muscle squeezes blood out of the heart into the arteries. At this point, the blood pressure is high because of the force exerted by the heart. At the next moment, the heart muscle relaxes to let fresh blood into the heart. At this point, the blood pressure is lower because of reduced force by the heart muscle.
The two stages of high and low blood pressure have special names. The highest pressure reached by blood in the arteries is called the systolic pressure. The lowest pressure reached by blood in the arteries is known as the diastolic pressure.
When a doctor or nurse takes a person's blood pressure, he or she records two readings: the systolic (highest) and the diastolic (lowest) pressure.
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