what can cause a sudden rise from normal blood pressure to 239/115?!


Question:
this rise was with no physical activity and caused dissiness, headache and pain in left arm. BP was verified at local emergency ward. Responded very slowly to medication, local practicioners appear at a loss to explain mechanism and want to treat it with high BP medications. I believe this would not be a wise choice as it is not proven to treat this condition and may simply mask the symptoms, not treat the ailment
Answers:
I partially agree. I do think taking the medicine will help prevent further elevations in your blood pressure and subsequent complications (heart attack, stroke, etc.). However, I do agree that you need to figure out why it became so high. I imagine they have done some basic blood work on you but I would also recommend an exercise stress test and if all of that is normal, consider imaging studies of your kidneys. Of course, before doing all of this I would confirm that your BP is persistently elevated.
Many things can cause you BP to get high like stress, pain, anxiety, diet, etc, but not usually to that degree. I would look for something else and ask your doctor to look a little more closely.

Other Answers:
It won't mask the symptoms, it could keep you alive. I take BP pills, it keeps mine at 120/80. Yours is so high you could have serious complications. Get a dr. to monitor you for awhile, but you will probably need medication.

Stress, Anxiety,or going through something very traumatic can cause such rise in blood pressure although i never heard of someones blood pressure so high.However, these can be probably causes.

You blood pressure spike could have been caused from the foods you are eating. If the doctor says you need the meds you should take them otherwise you could have a stroke or a heart attack. I worked in a nursing home for a year and if you bp is that high you you need to follow your doctors diet and take the meds. If you feel he is wrong get a second opinion. I hope this helps. Take care of yourself. Godbless You

Unless you want to have a stroke, take the medicine. It will not "mask the symptoms". It will help correct the symptoms so you won't have a stroke, lose your eyesight, or damage your kidneys. Blood pressure meds ARE proven to treat high blood pressure. Regardless of what caused it, you need to lower it and keep it that way. There are a couple of reasons for secondary hypertension, meaning it is caused by some type of pathology. These conditions are not as common as primary hypertension, and if you have never had hypertension before I would ask your doctor to dig deeper, esp. since you were slow to respond. Good luck. One more thing, I agree kidney studies may be useful in finding the diagnosis, but you might ask your doctor to try spironolactone. If that works, the hypertension is caused by hyperaldosteronism (excess aldosterone secretion). Or you can have blood work done to determine the aldosterone levels. There are a few other causes, but this should be enough to get you started!

You have the right to ask to see a specialist in this field. In the meantime, take the medication that the ER doc thinks that you need. And yes, you are right into thinking that this could just "mask" a greater evil going on inside your body. Changes in blood pressure can't always be figured out in the ER, so like I said, insist on seeing someone who specializes in this.
The times that I have seen such a sudden and HIGH BP like that for no apparent reason, usually is accompanied by slurred speech, numbness on one side, an excrutiating headache, changes in vision, nausea, vomitting. These are called TIA's (transischemic attacks, or mini-strokes), that are going on inside your brain. They are, more or less, a message to you that you're prone to have a stroke (which is a attack on your brain which is caused by not getting enough oxygen to your brain). It could be caused by your carotid arteries (arteries in your neck) being blocked up by plaque or "fat". There are surgeries available to clear the "fat" out of these arteries. This is, of course, a worse case senario. Sometimes the cause of a sudden spike in your BP can NEVER be found, and it never happens again. It was, more than likely, just a response that there was something going on inside, but that your own body has resolved. Have you checked for diabetes? These two are found together in lots of cases. For your own feeling of well-being, PLEASE insist in seeing a specialist. I hope that they don't find ANYTHING, and it was just one of those one time things that don't happen ever again.
They can also do an ultra sound on your carotid arteries to see if there is any build up of plaque or "fat" there.
I hoped I have helped and not made you worry un-neccesarily - I'm just telling you what may have caused it, and also that it may never happen again. Please don't obsess over it as that will keep your BP elevated! Just see a specialist to reassure yourself. GOOD LUCK AND GOD BLESS YOU.
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