Hypertension Assignment
UNIT 8 ASSIGNMENT
Kaplan University
Hypertension can be diagnosed in variety of ways and because it’s a common illness that most Americans suffer from, it is very common to have patients come in everyday and be evaluated for it. The most common way to be diagnosed with hypertension is checking the patient’s blood pressure. Patients can get their blood pressure checked anywhere from a local pharmacy to their primary care office. They can even check their blood pressure at home if they have a kit. Once a patient has been diagnosed with hypertension, they should be evaluated by their primary care physician. Normally a physician will use a stethoscope to listen to their heart for any abnormalities in the heart beat. They’ll also listen to their arteries for a swishing sound that may indicate that the artery may be partially blocked. (WebMD. 2014.) A physician determines hypertension by the two numbers from a blood pressure reading.
The upper number measures the pressure in the patient’s arteries when their heart beats. It is called the Systolic Pressure. The lower number measures the pressure in the patient’s arteries between beats. It is called the Diastolic Pressure. For a normal blood pressure it should be below 120/80mm Hg. Physicians recommend 115/75 because anything above that runs the risk of increasing cardiovascular disease. Both numbers are very important in blood pressure reading, but after 60, the systolic reading is even more significant. (Mayo Clinic. 2014.) If a patient is diagnosed with hypertension, then their physician would normally order some diagnostic testing to further evaluate the condition. Electrocardiogram and Echocardiogram are some of the diagnostic testing physicians order. Electrocardiogram aka EKG measures the electrical activity rate through electrodes attached to the patient’s arms, legs and chest. The results are recorded on graph paper. Echocardiogram is an ultrasound that provides
Kaplan University
Hypertension can be diagnosed in variety of ways and because it’s a common illness that most Americans suffer from, it is very common to have patients come in everyday and be evaluated for it. The most common way to be diagnosed with hypertension is checking the patient’s blood pressure. Patients can get their blood pressure checked anywhere from a local pharmacy to their primary care office. They can even check their blood pressure at home if they have a kit. Once a patient has been diagnosed with hypertension, they should be evaluated by their primary care physician. Normally a physician will use a stethoscope to listen to their heart for any abnormalities in the heart beat. They’ll also listen to their arteries for a swishing sound that may indicate that the artery may be partially blocked. (WebMD. 2014.) A physician determines hypertension by the two numbers from a blood pressure reading.
The upper number measures the pressure in the patient’s arteries when their heart beats. It is called the Systolic Pressure. The lower number measures the pressure in the patient’s arteries between beats. It is called the Diastolic Pressure. For a normal blood pressure it should be below 120/80mm Hg. Physicians recommend 115/75 because anything above that runs the risk of increasing cardiovascular disease. Both numbers are very important in blood pressure reading, but after 60, the systolic reading is even more significant. (Mayo Clinic. 2014.) If a patient is diagnosed with hypertension, then their physician would normally order some diagnostic testing to further evaluate the condition. Electrocardiogram and Echocardiogram are some of the diagnostic testing physicians order. Electrocardiogram aka EKG measures the electrical activity rate through electrodes attached to the patient’s arms, legs and chest. The results are recorded on graph paper. Echocardiogram is an ultrasound that provides