General Chat

Spoke with mother today who had said she went to the nurse 2 weeks ago and got her pressure checked. It was high at 173/93. Asked mum did she tell you to come back again for a recheck? No she didn't.

I thought it was very high and told mum to go and see her GP for a recheck. She did this week and it was similar.
GP said she has high blood pressure and has put her on tablets Amlodipine 5mg.

I was really surprised. I thought as from experience, you need a minimum of 3 readings taken at different times of the day and then they work out an average?

I have googled this question and it does reccomend 3 readings. I don't want to go over mums head and ring her GP but think she made a diagnosis too quickly. Mum could have been tired, rushing or worrying, as she does.

Any suggestions please.

Florence
in the hebrides

Watch the amlodopine, I took it for a while and decided the 'cure' was worse than the BP, swollen legs, intense itching and red skin etc. The alternative offered was likely to do the same...but of course they work well for some. I didn't go to Dr because of any symptoms, just arthritis, I personally think from the people I know that the drs hand out the pills rather too quickly.

High BP is not abnormal for some people when they see white coats, better to ask for a monitor to wear at home when not stressed if possible?

I 'suffer' from white coat syndrome - which means, when the doctor takes my BP it sky-rockets!
Before he diagnosed me with high BP, he suggested I bought myself a home BP kit.
Not 100% accurate, but I took 5 readings every day for a week, then took them to him. The average of these 5 readings indicated slightly high BP.
I'm on 5mg Amlodipine now.

I also take Amlodopine, since visiting A & E about 2 years ago and the doctor being concerned about my high blood pressure.
I was really surprised, as in the past my blood pressure had tended to be rather lower than normal.
The problems and risks of high blood pressure cause many doctors to err on the side of caution. I did stop taking the tablets for about 3 weeks once ( with GP's OK ) but had a high reading again so had to resume taking them.

Like Nyx, I did have swollen ankles and intense itching a while back and changed to a different medication. I felt awful. Not with it at all and certainly couldn't go out and about as I'm used to, so told the GP I couldn't live a half-life like that, so was willing to give amlodopine another go. So far I tolerate it well.

I have a friend who was NOT diagnosed, she had a stroke and terrific bleed on her brain and life as she knew it is over.

I'd rather take the tablets.

I had a routine BP check about 10 years ago. The doctor went rather quiet and redid the test on my other arm, twice. 180/108. I've been taking the tablets (10mg) ever since. Now BP is much closer to 'normal'. Losing a lot of weight has helped.

Andy

I have Lercanadipine first thing and Ramipril which seems to keep it under control now. I did have a hospital-controlled session which was meant to avoid the white coat syndrome by wearing a gadget ( and going home for 24 hours) which came on at regular intervals to check.

I taake Amlodopine 10mg and Bendroflumathiazide which is a diuretic. I have been taking these for about 20 years now and they do control my BP well. I do get swollen ankles in the evenings and occasioanlly itching legs at night but I can put up with that as I have never had any other problems with the pills. My Dad had a stroke in his 80s when he stopped taking his bP pills so a lesson learned.

I was first given Rampiril, and the effect were horrendous! :-S

I was just about to take an AAT exam, was walking up the stairs to the exam room, when I nearly walked through a window on the stairwell. Apparently, I also became incoherent.
People I was with stopped me, took me to the First Aid station, where I was asked what drug I'd taken.
They thought I'd taken LSD, or some other hallucinogenic drug!
They couldn't get much sense out of me, so sent me home!
A mile walk to the train station, train home, bus to home.
The walk took a long time, but fortunately the effects of the drug slowly wore off, but it was pretty stressful.

I stopped taking Rampiril, and went to see my doctor - who asked me to try it for a week, as the effects may lessen.
I said no! I value my life - high BP may cause a heart attack/stroke in the future, but if I carried on with Rampiril, the chances of my being under a bus within the week were extremely high.

It was Ramopril that made me feel so dreadful too.

I just couldn't have continued with them.

I've been taking pills for high blood pressure for about the last 15 years.

I take a diuretic 25mg in the morning, and Ramipril 10mg and Amlodipine 5mg at bedtime.

I also have white coat syndrome, and had a machine at home, but that went on the fritz about 6 months ago. I bought a new one and am under orders to take it to the doctor so they can calibrate it with the office machine (take my bp with one and then the other!) ........... but I haven't set it up yet.

Which means that I haven't taken my bp at home since September and I haven't been to see the doctor since October!

I had that 24 hour monitor test ............ the darn thing took my bp at 5 minute intervals during the day and 15 minutes at night. beep beep beep :-P

When I had my last mastectomy I had to stay in overnight and the nurses on the ward nearly went into orbit ......... my bp was over 200 at one point! They called in a doctor on duty, who prescribed a tranquiliser!

Thankyou for all you replies.
I had a chat with little brother tonight as he was a bit concerned too.

Maybe the doctor was right to err on the side of caution. Shes going back in two weeks so I guess if her reading is more normal then, then the medication has worked. if however its on the low side, then further investigation is required.

Think my main concern is that if she has"white coat syndrome", then the meds will lower her BP when not maybe necessary. Wait and see I guess.

I have my own machine and mine generally is 130/80 and has been for years even when I was pregnant, it hardly moved.

Its not easy when you have a parent with a degree of dementia who wouldn't admit it and a daughter 900 miles away who cant pop round to check on her when its needed. Have 2 brothers but only one checks on her weekly.

Will let you know the outcome when its rechecked

Florence
in the hebrides