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Our Services / Hypertension Specialist

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Hypertension Specialist services offered in Clarksburg, MD

Hypertension (high blood pressure) is a chronic condition that gives you no warning of its presence. At Peridot Primary Care in Clarksburg, Maryland, Princess Stephenson, CRNP, and her colleagues provide accurate blood pressure measurements and expert treatment of hypertension. To arrange your routine screening or find out more about reducing your blood pressure, call Peridot Primary Care today or schedule an appointment online.


Hypertension Q & A

What is hypertension?

Hypertension (high blood pressure) is a serious medical condition with potentially life-threatening outcomes. Most people have had a blood pressure check before. It’s a simple, noninvasive procedure where your provider at Peridot Primary Care wraps a blood pressure cuff around your arm.

They inflate the cuff so it squeezes the blood vessels, then measures the pressure inside your arteries — the vessels carrying oxygen-rich blood around your body. Your provider takes one reading when your heart’s beating (the systolic measurement) and another between heartbeats (the diastolic measurement).

Your blood pressure reading is a combination of the two measurements. Healthy blood pressure is at or below 120/80 (120 systolic over 80 diastolic). If your reading is between 120-129 systolic or below 80 diastolic, you have raised blood pressure.

Stage 1 hypertension is between 130-139 systolic or 80-89 diastolic. Stage 2 hypertension is over 140 systolic or 90 diastolic.

What problems does hypertension cause?

The increased blood pressure caused by hypertension damages your arteries. This damage can affect organs all around your body, leading to problems like:

  • Heart attacks
  • Strokes
  • Heart failure
  • Sight loss
  • Kidney failure
  • Dementia
  • Aneurysms
  • Sexual dysfunction

Hypertension doesn’t trigger symptoms until there’s already extensive damage to your organs. If you don’t undergo regular screening for high blood pressure, you could have a heart attack or stroke with no warning.

How is hypertension treated?

Most cases of hypertension develop from poor lifestyle choices, such as being overweight or obese, eating a lot of saturated fats and cholesterol, and not exercising. Other risk factors for hypertension include too much salt in your diet and chronic stress. Your provider at Peridot Primary Care can offer you advice on managing these risks.

One of the keys to overcoming hypertension is to make better choices. A diet that’s full of fruit, vegetables, and whole grains, with healthy fats, vitamins and minerals, and plenty of fiber, is best for healthy circulation. Exercising regularly, reducing salt intake, and tackling the causes of your stress are also important.

If you’re struggling to lose weight, your provider can design a medically supervised program to assist with healthy, sustainable weight loss. If you smoke, they can also help you quit, further improving your health. Patients with dangerously high blood pressure might require medication to lower it.

To arrange a fast and easy blood pressure check or find out more about hypertension, call Peridot Primary Care today or book an appointment online.