Health News
People with diabetes should have their blood pressure monitored and managed aggressively, a leading nephrologist told a group of Sinai Hospital physicians last week.
George Bakris, M.D. presented on ?Updates in Treatment Goals for the Diabetic Hypertensive? at Sinai Hospital?s Grand Rounds. Dr. Bakris is the Director of Hypertension Center and a professor at the University of Chicago Medical Center. The presentation was dedicated to the numerous accomplishments of longtime Sinai Hospital physician Leon Kassel, M.D.
There is a significant increase in mortality rates for patients in a hospital who have both diabetes and hypertension. Untreated high blood pressure increases the likelihood of a heart attack or stroke. That?s one of the reasons why physicians need to get patients? blood pressure controlled, which can be accomplished through medication, Dr. Bakris says.
According to the American Heart Association, 77 percent of first-time stroke victims have a blood pressure of over 140/90. The recommendations for blood pressure levels in those with diabetes and chronic kidney disease (without proteinuria) should be less than 140/90, Dr. Bakris says.
?If your patient doesn?t have proteinuria, treat the blood pressure and lipids with the simplest medications and get it below 140/90,? he says.
Diabetes and high blood pressure are risk factors for kidney disease. Those with diabetes should be monitored for microalbuminuria, or small amounts of a protein called albumin in the urine, although physicians should be careful to not jump to conclusions.
?Microalbuminuria does not by itself indicase kidney disease,? Dr. Bakris says. ?It is a risk marker, not a risk factor. If you take care of the heart and the brain the kidneys will come along for the ride.?
Both patients and health care providers also need to remember to take blood pressure accurately.
?The patients? back should be support with both feet on the floor,? Dr. Bakris reminded the physicians. He?s a believer in letting patients use home blood pressure kits.
?Taking blood pressure at home empowers the patient with information,? he says.
To learn more about assessing your high blood pressure, visit the American Heart Association's High Blood Pressure Health Risk Calculator. You can also visit Know Your Health Baltimore to do a heart assessment test.
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Health News
Monitoring and Managing Diabetes and High Blood Pressure
People with diabetes should have their blood pressure monitored and managed aggressively, a leading nephrologist told a group of Sinai Hospital physicians last week.
George Bakris, M.D. presented on ?Updates in Treatment Goals for the Diabetic Hypertensive? at Sinai Hospital?s Grand Rounds. Dr. Bakris is the Director of Hypertension Center and a professor at the University of Chicago Medical Center. The presentation was dedicated to the numerous accomplishments of longtime Sinai Hospital physician Leon Kassel, M.D.
There is a significant increase in mortality rates for patients in a hospital who have both diabetes and hypertension. Untreated high blood pressure increases the likelihood of a heart attack or stroke. That?s one of the reasons why physicians need to get patients? blood pressure controlled, which can be accomplished through medication, Dr. Bakris says.
According to the American Heart Association, 77 percent of first-time stroke victims have a blood pressure of over 140/90. The recommendations for blood pressure levels in those with diabetes and chronic kidney disease (without proteinuria) should be less than 140/90, Dr. Bakris says.
?If your patient doesn?t have proteinuria, treat the blood pressure and lipids with the simplest medications and get it below 140/90,? he says.
Diabetes and high blood pressure are risk factors for kidney disease. Those with diabetes should be monitored for microalbuminuria, or small amounts of a protein called albumin in the urine, although physicians should be careful to not jump to conclusions.
?Microalbuminuria does not by itself indicase kidney disease,? Dr. Bakris says. ?It is a risk marker, not a risk factor. If you take care of the heart and the brain the kidneys will come along for the ride.?
Both patients and health care providers also need to remember to take blood pressure accurately.
?The patients? back should be support with both feet on the floor,? Dr. Bakris reminded the physicians. He?s a believer in letting patients use home blood pressure kits.
?Taking blood pressure at home empowers the patient with information,? he says.
To learn more about assessing your high blood pressure, visit the American Heart Association's High Blood Pressure Health Risk Calculator. You can also visit Know Your Health Baltimore to do a heart assessment test.
- A Looming Danger: About 1 In 3 U.s. Adults Are Pre-diabetic, But Only About 11% Say They Have Received Such A Diagnosis
Before Type 2 diabetes develops, most people experience what is called prediabetes, where the blood sugar levels are above normal, but below diabetic, Dr. Philip A. Kern, University of Kentucky professor and director of the Center for Clinical and Translational...
- Study Says Obese Children (kentucky's A Leader In That) May Have Quadruple The Risk Of Having High Blood Pressure As Adults
By Molly Burchett Kentucky Health News A new study shows that being obese in childhood may quadruple the risk of having high blood pressure risk as an adult, highlighting the need for Kentucky to curb its high rate of childhood obesity. Eighteen percent...
- Small Steps Can Prevent Kentucky's No. 1 Killer, Heart Disease
It is now February, which is American Heart Month and a perfect time to remind people that small steps can reduce their risk of heart disease, Kentucky's No. 1 killer. You may be surprised to hear that almost 80 percent of heart disease is preventable...
- Smoking Increases Risk Of High Blood Pressure In Children
There's yet another reason to quit smoking: parents who smoke may be raising their child's blood pressure. This week in Circulation, Swiss researchers published their results of a study looking at parents who smoked and their preschool-aged children....
- Know Your Numbers To Watch Heart Health
It pays to know your numbers. To take a free online heart risk assessment and enter a drawing to receive one of 500 free Omron pedometers*, visit KnowYourNumbersBaltimore.com. *While supplies last. Last year, Nadine Williams-Holmes began having chest...