Dr. Maria Delgado-Lelievre is the Director of the Comprehensive Hypertension Center at the University of Miami Health System. For more information about Dr. Delgado and how the center helps patients, click here or visit the UHealth blog.
MEET PRESTON PUGH
Preston Pugh had no idea he suffered from high blood pressure, until he passed out on a flight.
“My best friend was with me on the plane, said that he just saw me kind of faint and fade away,” Preston explains.
That is when he went to see Maria Delgado-Lelievre, M.D., the head of the Comprehensive Hypertension Center at UHealth.
“In the United States, one out of two adults are either hypertensive or will become hypertensive in the future,” Dr. Delgado says.
It is the No. 1 risk for heart disease, but people don’t realize they are hypertensive until it’s too late.
“Sadly, the patient will go through their life with elevated blood pressure and it’s when they come to the hospital for either heart attack, chest pain, shortness of breath, or signs of stroke that they realize their blood pressure was high,” says Dr. Delgado.
At the Hypertension Center each patient is evaluated based on four pillars.
“Genetics, biochemical, physiological, and the environmental pillar,” Dr. Delgado says.
Piecing together a full picture of the patient and their family history is critical to understanding cardiovascular risk.
“Life is so precious,” says Preston.
Since losing his brother to a heart attack last year, Preston is focusing on his health with the care he is now receiving.
“I have a team of doctors who are looking at me from a holistic standpoint,” says Preston.
FOCUSING ON YOU
Focusing on You: Innovations in Modern Medicine is a series of healthcare-related stories airing regularly on WPLG Local 10. For more stories like this one, visit YouTube channels for UHealth, the University of Miami Health System.
Above content provided by UHealth, the University of Miami Health System