After the age of 50 focus only on upper blood pressure
After the age of 50 focus only on upper blood pressure
New Delhi, May 08, 2016: For patients over 50, doctors only need to monitor the upper systolic blood pressure, and can ignore the lower diastolic blood pressure reading, said, Padma Shri Awardee, Dr KK Aggarwal, President Heart Care Foundation of India and Honorary Secretary General IMA.
Systolic blood pressure – the top number in a blood pressure reading – is the pressure exerted at the beginning of the heart’s pumping cycle, while diastolic pressure records the lowest pressure during the resting cycle of the heart. Both pressures are routinely measured when recording the blood pressure.
As per a report published in the journal The Lancet, there is such an emphasis on diastolic pressure that the patients are not getting their systolic blood pressures adequately controlled. The fact is that people over the age of 50 probably do not even need to measure diastolic – it’s only the systolic blood pressure that should be the focus.
Generally, systolic blood pressure continues to increase with age, while diastolic pressure starts to drop after age 50, which is the same time when cardiovascular risk begins to rise. Therefore, there is an increased prevalence of systolic hypertension past age 50, whereas diastolic hypertension is practically nonexistent. Rising systolic pressure is the most significant factor in causing stroke and heart disease.
For people under 50, the scenario may be different. About 40 percent of adults under 40 years of age have diastolic hypertension, and about a third of those between 40 and 50 have the problem. For these patients, a continued emphasis on both systolic and diastolic blood pressures is needed. However, controlling systolic blood pressure, even among these younger patients, almost always results in adequate control of diastolic blood pressure, too.
For people 50 or older, systolic pressure is high if it is 140 mmHg or above.
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About Heart Care Foundation of India
Initiated in 1986, the Heart Care Foundation of India is a leading National NGO working in the field of creating mass health awareness among people from all walks of life and providing solutions for India’s everyday healthcare needs. The NGO uses consumer-based entertainment modules to impart health education and increase awareness amongst people. A leading example of this is the Perfect Health Mela, an annual event started in 1993 that is attended by over 2-3 lakh people each year. The Mela showcases activities across categories such as health education seminars and check-ups, entertainment programs, lifestyle exhibitions, lectures, workshops, and competitions. In addition to this, the NGO conducts programs and camps to train people on the technique of hands only CPR through its CPR 10 mantra for revival after a sudden cardiac arrest. They currently hold three Limca book of world records for the maximum number of people trained in hands-only CPR in one go. Keeping article 21 of the Indian constitution in mind, which guarantees a person Right to Life, Heart Care Foundation of India has also recently initiated a project called the Sameer Malik Heart Care Foundation Fund to ensure that no one dies of a heart disease just because they cannot afford treatment.
