Blood Pressure

[beadyeyes]

I just read something in another thread that prompted this question.

My blood pressure has always been very consistent...120 - 130 over 80-90. For the past several months to year, the same time period some new symptoms has cropped up, my blood pressure has been on the rise...up into high 140's - mid 150's over close to 100.

Is there any relationship to excerbations and rising blood pressure?

[rdmc]

You probably were reading a thread I posted. My BP is high due to the location of a particular lesion that is in a part of the brain that regulates autonomic functions.

So the answer would be that unless you have a lesion that is located in that area HBP wouldn't normally go along with an exacerbation.

Maybe meds could cause your bp to rise, for instance steroids will definitely hike your bp. Not sure about any of the DMDs...but it might be something worth looking into.

what does your doctor attribute the rise to? The diastolic seems like a significant rise...are you taking bp meds?

[Waydwnsouth1]

Beadyeyes

I do not know what has led to your increase in blood pressure. But I do know this, whatever the reason, whenever your blood pressure is in that range consistantly you should seek medical attention ASAP. I currently take a boat load of medication and on blood pressure medicine and my blood pressure is under control.

From personal experience my blood pressure was elevated like that and I spent 2 days in the hospital.

[gomer]

My BP often gets into the 160s and higher. One evening I felt bad, went to our local ER with 200+ over 100+, they hooked me up and monitored for an hour or so and sent me home.

My BP has not been in good control for over 6mo now. I am usually good in the AM but sky high by evening. I was at my new urologist yesterday and I was om the upper 160s, not a word. Nobody seems to have a clue about WHY my BP runs so high. I take a ton of meds for it.

Gomer Sir Falls-a-lto

[Just MS me]

I had this problem but just by shear luck they found out that I have fibro musclar dysplasa, I had my arterys openn and for about 3 or 4 yrs my BP was perfect now it is going back up, but the scans of my arties still show good, now I am on 2 BP meds and still running abot 140 ish over 90ish. Just not sure.

[beadyeyes]

You probably were reading a thread I posted. My BP is high due to the location of a particular lesion that is in a part of the brain that regulates autonomic functions.

So the answer would be that unless you have a lesion that is located in that area HBP wouldn't normally go along with an exacerbation.

Maybe meds could cause your bp to rise, for instance steroids will definitely hike your bp. Not sure about any of the DMDs...but it might be something worth looking into.

what does your doctor attribute the rise to? The diastolic seems like a significant rise...are you taking bp meds?

Yes, that was the post. I am not on BP meds. I have an appt on Thurs with my PCP and will see how my exam goes...I will ask him if he thinks I need to go on meds.

My next neuro appt in in 2 wks to review my latest MRI which shows new activity...don't know where the new lesions are as yet.

Thanks for you input everyone!

[rdmc]

Just to clarify my BP situation from the lesion. My BP is usually in the good range, but it can spike, and the things that cause it to spike are often the same things that would trigger my MS symptoms. Stress, too much noise and lights (walmart syndrome ) I'm not diagnosed as having primary hypertension because it's only high during the spikes. The spikes are very labile up to 210/100 and I get tachycardic too.

A good way to evaluate BP is to wear a 24 hour BP monitor...it checks your BP every 15 minutes during the day and I think every 1/2 hour at night. They can see what exactly is happening. They can identify White Coast Syndrome from true hypertension. The test is really informative. Mine did spike a couple times during the night to very high ranges, and I found out I'm a non-dipper, most people's BP goes down when they sleep, mine doesn't.

There is another condition that can cause BP spikes called pheochromocytoma (a benign tumor on your adrenal gland.) I had all the tests for that, and even though my adrenaline levels indicated I might have one, I didn't...they do a MRI of your adrenals to check.

I tried 4 or more different bp meds, but because mine isn't high except during the spikes, the normal meds botttomed it out too low, sometimes 80/45...so my strategy from the MS specialist (his plan worked better than the hypertension specialist plan) is a low dose patch and then pop a fast acting bp pill when it spikes (and I can feel it spike, plus I monitor it during the day.)

So far the strategy's worked fine, until yesterday (that's the post you probably read) and it didn't respond to the med because of my undiagnosed UTI. I had popped pills at home and it wouldn't come down, they didn't administer any more meds, but it did come down on it's own after 5 hours. They didn't seem too concerned...it was sort of weird, my GP is saying to go immediately to the ER, the ER staff did nothing other than to monitor it and wait for it to come down. Oh well, they did find out I had the UTI, so that was good.

This spiky kind of BP is rare. There is a type of BP spike called autonomic dyreflexia most common for spinal cord injury patients...and some MS patients have been identified as having it...that has to do with a lesion about T6 in the spine...mine is from a brainstem lesion.

I'd imagine if your bp is consistently elevated, then you need to be on a med sometimes they use combinations, they tried that with me for awhile.

Well that's my story...turned into a novel, LOL.

I hope you find a med that will work for you. Usually it's just a case of finding the right med and taking it on a regular basis. I've never had a side effect from any of the BP meds I've used.