Now to the layperson these may appear like common sense but you have to remember that we are dealing with a complicated condition and disease and as such we have to consider our treatment options carefully.



According to a study published recently in the Robarts Research Institute in Canada, scientists appear to have developed a simplified and potentially much more effective method of treating high blood pressure.

The project leader, Dr Ross Feldman, a clinical pharmacologist, demonstrated through the study that more patients had their blood pressure lowered and actually to a greater extent when the healthcare practitioners or family doctors involved used a simplified treatment protocol rather than having to choose from the rather large (and growing) number of drugs available to treat the condition.

The other side effect of this particular study was that though the primary focus of the study was purely in relation to hypertension or high blood pressure it would appear from the initial results of this study that it could cause a massive change in the way healthcare practitioners and doctors treat a whole series of chronic conditions and diseases.

The trial, otherwise know as the Simplified Treatment Intervention To Control Hypertension (STITCH) trial was a programme that analyzed the results of the treatment of both the 2100 patients with high blood pressure spread over 45 family practices in Ontario in Canada.

What is it about high blood pressure that makes it a problem and when ignored so lethal?

Only in approximately 1 out of 20 cases will the sufferer be aware of their high blood pressure.

The majority of sufferers of high blood pressure, if undiagnosed go years without being aware of their condition, the so called "Silent Killer".

If spotted there are a couple of signs that can be attributed to high blood pressure and if these are observed and with out apparent cause then they should not be left untreated.

These symptoms can include the following: Nosebleeds , Fainting Spells, Blurred Vision, Increased frequency of urinating at night.

The above taken together would tend to indicate an occurrence of high blood pressure but a careful diagnosis is needed as they just as easily could indicate associate conditions.

What is the exact definition of high blood pressure?

Using an internal network and system of vessels called arteries, the heart pumps blood and nutrients to the body's major tissues and organs.

For about ninety percent of sufferers of high blood pressure, there is no single cause to be found and as such this type of high blood pressure is termed "Primary (Essential) High Blood Pressure".

In the majority of cases where the cause of the high blood pressure can be traced directly to one particular failing organ or cause then it is not uncommon for the associate problems to be treated successfully where this "Secondary High Blood Pressure" is not the direct cause of the associate high blood pressure.

In very rare cases, that is to say less than 10 percent, the high blood pressure diagnosed lies within the category known as "Malignant Hypertension". This can quite often be discovered by accident or through an associate medical test such as an eye examination whereby an Optician can detect abnormalities through the effect they have on the eye.