Blood Pressure with Valve disease... Ok I need help explaining this

[JulieS]

ok so I never claimed to be the sharpest knife in the drawer at times, nor the brightest bulb in the package but... I was told before my first OHS, when the surgeon called me at home to discuss. I asked if I should have high BP or something indicating that it was for sure time to replace. He responded no, it is not possible for you to get high BP with your situation. Ok I thought I understood that. So what is the difference between then and now after. I have always had normally low great numbers. Like 112/76. So 10 years into the AVR and root enlargement we are getting numbers like 127/72 and steadily you could bet at the race track that was the reading which was up through a year ago I was getting a MAXimum on the stress test of 148/88. Recently for the past couple of weeks I stopped and had the readings done where I get my prescriptions filled and we are getting 141/77. This all confuses me. I know there is someone on this wonderful forum that can help me understand these. I got involved reading and the articles are really confusing me. :rolleyes2: I thought we couldn't get high BP.:thumbup:

 

[Michellemar]

Huh. My doctor said that my numbers would start spreading, more pts between Sand D. But THEN after an Adenosine nuclear scan (that ran my heart just great...but do you think I can walk a block now???) I travelled to USC, and did alot of sitting up while doing more tests and waiting to meet my Cardiologist, I asked to lie down; a PA took my bp and I was 89/60. This is not separating as they had been. I just now am 10 days pre-op, thought I'd get out of the bed with my feet up which is the new normal.... Tried some paint samples on the wall, needed to lie down, but...JUST one more paint swatch... And then took my bp just before crashing, curious... 105/65... Now these aren't me, I'm a 110/58 type normally...why the bottom was creeping up and the top dropping... Never been less than 40 pts apart..so bed, feet up, half hr later needed the rest room and i hadnt drunk anything....chewed some Valium and feet up; was able hrs later to walk
to the kitchen to get tea, bathroom but that's it. If you know your normal, and you're seeing this pt spread AND up all over... All I can think is it all means SOMETHING, some even if benign...meds ups the numbers, pain, times in psych stress... Good Luck for finding your stuff here, almost everyone will have something somewhere that helps. The best to you !Michelle

 

[buncle]

If you are refering to the BP machines that are at most pharmacies you slip your arm in that are for the general public? They are not the most reliable.

 

[Freddie]

If you are referring to the BP machines that are at most pharmacies you slip your arm in that are for the general public? They are not the most reliable.

I second this statement. Don't trust those machines.

 

[Duff Man]

inconsistent size in blood pressure cuff, perhaps weight gain leading to cuff size mismatch, measurement error such as positioning of the arm and timing of the measurement (taken right after you walked in to the office), anxiety(white coat hypertension), caffeine, and there could be a bunch of other factors.

I propose you find out what your real blood pressure is and log it over time. Here's how I would do it:

You need to be sure the cuff you and the doctor's office are using is sized appropriately for your arm - especially make sure that it's not too small. If the cuff is too small, it will give you erroneously high readings. The reason this happens is because in a missized cuff, the air bladder doesn't wrap all the way around the arm, and it takes more pressure to occlude the blood vessels - hence giving you a false high reading. My hypertension specialist at UofM said this problem can skew the readings as much as 30 points, and an average of 15-20. So make sure the cuff's bladder wraps around the entire arm. If you are overweight, there is a very good chance the cuff is too small.

There's an emotional aspect to hypertension too. You need to make sure you're not having white coat syndrome by taking your bp at home.

When you take your blood pressure at home, use a monitor validated by AAMI like the omron 700 series. Avoid the wrist or finger models. Make sure the cuff is large enough for your arm so the bladder fully encompasses it. Make sure you're seated for several minutes before you begin. Keep your arm at HEART LEVEL even if you need to prop it up with a pillow. Take the reading 3 times, but do not look at the reading until after the third one. Only record the third reading unless your doctor says otherwise.

Here's an article from the University of Michigan's hypertension clinic on home blood pressure monitoring and other good nuggets of info: http://www.med.umich.edu/1libr/guides/homebp.htm

 

[JulieS]

Thank you, was anyone else told the same thing. You cannot get high BP with AV disease and MVR? What was everyones BP readings before surgery? This should be interesting.

 

[kailin]

High blood pressure was the first condition for which I have had medication, except for short bouts of antibiotics, in many decades. Carvedilol, 3.125, for at least a year so far.

I was checking BP every day for a while. Now it's rather low, comparatively, not sure if that's a reaction of the medication, or more about getting past a few years of fairly relentless trauma. Perhaps what was meant is that a stenotic valve is not likely the single cause of high blood pressure, but I have/had both. Before the medication, often my BP was as high as the 160-180 over 80-90.

-------------

Stenotic BAV, not yet replaced. 0.6-0. Diagnosed 3/2010.

 

[CATDOG]

Just my theory (not a doc)... Those of you that were told before surgery that you "couldn't get high b.p.", did you have significant regurgitation before surgery? Now that you have had surgery, perhaps your regurgitation has been much improved? So maybe now you CAN get high b.p.--just like the rest of the population?

Not sure how it works for stenosis. I've had both high b.p. and low b.p. with about the same amount of AS.

 

[Rocky]

I have checked my BP three ways. One is by the doctor, the other is the machine in the doctors office which does six checks over half an hour, and the other is at the grocery store. I find the most unrealiable is the one the doctor does as it seems to have the most swing. (white coat blood pressure) the most reliable one is the multi-check at the doctors office, and the sedond is the one at the grocery store. But, I dont just check it once. I do it four times with a minute between each and then average them out. It is not that far off the multi-check at the doctors office on his fancy expensive machine.

 

[Jkm7]

Huh. My doctor said that my numbers would start spreading, more pts between Sand D. But THEN after an Adenosine nuclear scan (that ran my heart just great...but do you think I can walk a block now???) I travelled to USC, and did alot of sitting up while doing more tests and waiting to meet my Cardiologist, I asked to lie down; a PA took my bp and I was 89/60. This is not separating as they had been. I just now am 10 days pre-op, thought I'd get out of the bed with my feet up which is the new normal.... Tried some paint samples on the wall, needed to lie down, but...JUST one more paint swatch... And then took my bp just before crashing, curious... 105/65... Now these aren't me, I'm a 110/58 type normally...why the bottom was creeping up and the top dropping... Never been less than 40 pts apart..so bed, feet up, half hr later needed the rest room and i hadnt drunk anything....chewed some Valium and feet up; was able hrs later to walk
to the kitchen to get tea, bathroom but that's it. If you know your normal, and you're seeing this pt spread AND up all over... All I can think is it all means SOMETHING, some even if benign...meds ups the numbers, pain, times in psych stress... Good Luck for finding your stuff here, almost everyone will have something somewhere that helps. The best to you !Michelle

I'm a little confused, Michelle, and hope you don't mind my asking.

Has your doctor ordered you to bed rest while waiting for your surgery or this what makes you more comfortable?
I would think it's making you very weak which will not be that helpful post op when you need to get up and walk to keep your lungs clear and smooth your recovery.

We're all weak after even if we have remained somewhat active prior.
Certainly I'll understand if you don't care to respond.

 

[LeakyUK]

My top BP was being monitored bevore regurgitation was diagnosed, and settled at around 135. Straight after diagnosis it shot up to 185 and is coming down slowly on meds. My conclusion is that worrying about BP makes it worse. I was told that fixing the valve will not fix the BP, so I can expect to stay on meds post surgery.