High blood pressure – the hidden warning sign of deadly hypertension in your eyes

High blood pressure is a common condition that affects more than a quarter of all adults in the UK. The condition, which is also known as hypertension, can lead to a number of symptoms, including developing blood spots in the eyes.

Hypertension increases the risk of developing some deadly complications, including heart attacks and strokes.

It’s crucial that you make a few lifestyle changes to lower your blood pressure, if you have hypertension.

But, it can be difficult to know if you’re at risk of high blood pressure, as the condition rarely has any visible symptoms.

There are, however, some warning signs to look out for – including blood spots in the eyes.

These blood spots may not directly be caused by hypertension, warned the American Heart Association.

But untreated high blood pressure can cause damage to the optic nerve.

This damage subsequently leads to broken blood vessels in the eyes.

That may subsequently lead to bright red patches on the whites of the eyes.

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“A variety of symptoms may be indirectly related to, but are not always caused by, high blood pressure,” said the charity.

“Blood spots in the eyes [subconjunctival haemorrhage] are more common in people with diabetes or high blood pressure, but neither condition causes the blood spots.

“Floaters in the eyes are also not related to high blood pressure.

“However, an eye doctor [ophthalmologist] may be able to detect damage to the optic nerve caused by untreated high blood pressure.”

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Other warning signs of a hypertensive emergency include muscle tremors, or if you have a sudden fall.

If you’ve already been diagnosed with high blood pressure, and develop any of these symptoms, you should speak to a doctor straight away.

Any blood pressure above 180/120mmHg could permanently damage your blood vessels, and they may subsequently start leaking fluid.

A number of people in the UK may have high blood pressure without even knowing it.

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That’s because signs of the condition only tend to reveal themselves if you have extremely high blood pressure.

It’s crucial that people with hypertension identify the condition early, as it can lead to a number of deadly complications.

All adults over 40 years old should check their blood pressure at least once every five years.

You could lower your risk of high blood pressure by eating a healthy, balanced diet, and by doing regular exercise.

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