What Causes High Diastolic Levels?

Posted on Fri, 8 Apr 2016

Medically reviewed by Ask A Doctor - 24x7 Medical Review Team

Fri, 8 Apr 2016 Answered on

Sat, 4 Jun 2016 Last reviewed on

Question : My mother died March 10 and was quite stressful. Since then, my B/P has been in the 160/96 range despite increased lisinopril from 20 to 40 Mg. Why is my diastolic so stubbornly high???

Answered by Dr. Ilir Sharka (24 minutes later)

Brief Answer:
I would explain as follows:

Detailed Answer:
Hello!

Welcome on HCM!

First I would like to send my condolences for the loss of your beloved person.

Regarding your concern, I would explain that your uncontrolled high blood pressure are quite explicable giving your post traumatic body reaction.

One of the reason of your increased diastolic blood pressure is psychological stress.

But, at the same time your systolic blood pressure is proportionally increased.

I would recommend monitoring closely your BP values for a couple of days (up to a week) several times daily. If those high values persist, then it is advisable to discuss with your attending doctor to see the possibility of adding new anti-hypertensive drugs, like a calcium channel blocker (Amlodipine, Lercanidipine, etc.) or hydrochlorothiazide,to your actual therapy.

Hope to have been helpful!

In case of any further uncertainties, feel free to ask me again.

Greetings!

Dr. Iliri

Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar