Hypertension

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Hypertension

The medical term for high blood pressure is hypertension. Blood pressure is measured by two numbers. The top number is your systolic pressure, the pressure created when your heart beats. It is considered high if consistently over 140. The bottom number is your diastolic pressure, the pressure inside blood vessels when the heart is at rest. It is considered high if consistently over 90.

Review Date: 12/26/2011
Reviewed By: Harvey Simon, MD, Editor-in-Chief, Associate Professor of Medicine, Harvard Medical School; Senior Physician, Massachusetts General Hospital.

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