MIAMI – High blood pressure is the leading risk factor for heart disease and stroke, but it can often be prevented or managed if diagnosed and treated properly.
In this health report we see how a Comprehensive Hypertension Center at UHealth is helping patients reduced their risks and improve their health.
As Pradip Bhavsar reached his sixties, a knee injury left him battling with his weight and, in turn, skyrocketing blood pressure numbers.
“One hundred eight over one hundred ten so my son has to take me to emergency room,” Bhavsar said.
He said it became his wake-up call and brought him to Dr. Maria Delgado, Director of the University of Miami’s Comprehensive Hypertension Center.
The center has created four pillars of care, starting with genetics.
“Genetics are important to understanding the risk of hypertension, even understanding the type of hypertension you’re going to develop,” Delgado said.
Along with family history, the center looks at how environment and behavior affect those genetic factors.
Experts also do a biochemical analysis, looking at salt sensitivity and abnormal potassium levels.
“So, this is important because we can separate patients who are purely salt sensitive meaning they respond to salt, the majority of hypertensive are like that, if they eat salt the blood pressure goes up, and everybody more or less relates to that but there are also people where salt is not the predominant defect it’s the potassium so they cannot hold onto their potassium,” Delgado said.
Additionally, the center does a physiological study of how a person’s blood pressure can change throughout the day and night.
“Seeing how your blood pressure behaves during those time periods is important for treatment,” Delgado said.
Since joining the center, Bhavsar lost weight and brought his blood pressure into a safe range.
Along with diet and exercise he makes sure to get in his daily step count.
“Minimum 12 thousand steps a day I have to do I made up my mind and if I do more that is a benefit for my health,” he said.
Nearly half of all Americans are grappling with high blood pressure but less than half have their blood pressure under control.