Hello and welcome to the Zero to Finals podcast.

My name is Tom and in this episode I'm going to be going through hypertension.

And you can find written notes on this topic at zero to finals.com slash hypertension

or in the cardiology section of the Zero to Finals Medicine book.

So let's get straight into it.

Hypertension is the term used to describe a high blood pressure.

The nice guidelines on hypertension, updated in 2022,

suggest a diagnosis of hypertension with a blood pressure

above 140 over 90 in the clinical setting confirmed with ambulatory or home readings above 135 over 85.

Let's talk about the causes.

Essential hypertension accounts for 90% of cases of hypertension.

This is also known as primary hypertension,

and this means the high blood pressure has developed on its own

and does not have a secondary cause.

Secondary causes of hypertension can be remembered with the roped, numonic R-O-P-E-D.

R for renal disease, O for obesity, P for pregnancy-inuced hypertension or preeclampsia, E for endocrine, and D for drugs,

for example, alcohol, steroids, non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, estrogen and licorice.

Rheanal disease is the most common cause of secondary hypertension.

When the blood pressure is very high or it does not respond to treatment,

consider potential renal artery stenosis, which is narrowing of the renal artery.

This can be diagnosed with a duplex ultrasound or an MR angiogram or CT angiogram.

Most endocrine conditions can cause hypertension. Hyperaldosteronism, or a raised aldosterone level,

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