To mark World Hypertension Day, Max Super Speciality Hospital (MSSH) Mohali organised a Health Talk at Senior Citizens Club, Sector 25 on Thursday. During the occasion, experts said that due to changing lifestyles and increasing work-related stress 45 per cent of the city’s current population suffer from high BP.
Dr Sumit Khetarpal, Sr consultant, Internal Medicine and Dr Amit Gupta, Sr Consultant, Interventional Cardiology at MSSH said that latest research showed that the number of hypertension cases has doubled in Chandigarh over the last 30 years.
Rise in sedentary life style, lack of physical activity, high fat intake, obesity, alcohol consumption, unhealthy diet, smoking and increasing work pressure were the major predisposing factors of hypertension.
Terming it a silent killer, Dr Khetarpal said, “Unchecked high BP could damage the heart, kidneys, brain and blood vessels. Essentially the disease was asymptomatic, but in some patients it might produce headache, breathlessness and light-headedness. The only way to detect it was to get it measured.”
Persistent hypertension is one of the primary risk factors for heart failure, myocardial infarction, stroke, arterial aneurysm and chronic kidney failure.
“Everyone above the age of 20 should get their BP checked. The diabetic patients should regularly monitor their BP to reduce the chances of target organs damage. Women, who have high BP during pregnancy should always be on a doctor’s follow up for the development of hypertension in later life,” said Dr Gupta.