Quick question on bp

[Strawberry]

This is actually about my best friend. Everyone says its anxiety, but her blood pressure monitor just read 134 over 120, heart rate 97 . Is that OI? What can I tell her? Her husband has agreed to take her to the hospital at 9 am Thursday. I want her to go armed with knowledge. I know the top and bottom numbers are too close, but I don't know what it means.

Thank you in advance!

Ps she has been having issues similar to gluten intolerance and hypoglycemia recently too.

Any links or advice for the doctors is much appreciated.

 

[Sushi]

This is actually about my best friend. Everyone says its anxiety, but her blood pressure monitor just read 134 over 120, heart rate 97 .

Is your friend with you? Can you ask her to take a few more readings? Those are obviously not readings you want but her BP machine may not be accurate.

 

[halcyon]

Is that OI?

Does her BP and heart rate go down when she lays down?

 

[Sushi]

Is that OI?

Does her BP and heart rate go down when she lays down?

Perhaps she could do the "poor man's tilt table test" to get more data. I think the directions there are pretty standard except I don't think you need to lie down for a full hour before your first reading.

 

[taniaaust1]

I personally wouldn't suggest poor mans tilt table test without under medical supervision as if she has got dysautonomia issues it is possible her BP could also spike up higher rather then fall and she could have a stroke. (It can go both ways in dysautonomia eg mine can go up to 197/136 in one minute of standing)

120 dystolic is classified as a hypertensive emergency https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hypertension . If this is her actual BP she should be going straight to a doctor and not waiting to do so.

Don't mess around with a dystolic reading like this if its correct... see a dr.

 

[Valentijn]

134/120 = a pulse pressure of 14. That is shockingly low, but doctors often won't look for pulse pressure outside of an ER (A&E). A low pulse pressure could certainly cause elevated heart rate, especially when standing for a bit.

The test for anxiety versus OI should be pretty simple: does she feel "anxious" when she's lying down, or only when she's standing or sitting up for too long? Does lying down make her feel better after a bit? Orthostatic Anxiety doesn't exist, as far as I know, and that should even be a clear distinction for most doctors.

 

[Strawberry]

Sorry that I went to bed after posting. She has high readings often, but that was the first I saw the numbers that close. Thank you valentine for pulse pressure! I think it's high even when laying down, but I don't know for sure.

Thank you all for the info, I will send her this link and have her read it. Hopefully I can get more info today. It sounds like pulse pressure and high dystolic number is enough info for now, and I hope this hospital knows what is going on with her. These anxiety attacks come from nowhere, something is not right.