Low Blood Pressure
What is low blood pressure?
Each heartbeat pushes blood through your arteries. Arteries are the blood vessels that carry blood from your heart to your body. Blood pressure is the pressure of blood in your arteries. Normal blood pressure keeps blood flowing through your body. High blood pressure strains your heart and can damage your arteries and other organs. Low blood pressure also can be dangerous.
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Low blood pressure means your organs don't get enough blood
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It can be caused by losing blood or being dehydrated
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Low blood pressure makes you weak and dizzy and you might faint
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Doctors will give you IV fluid and sometimes medicines to raise your blood pressure
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If you've lost a lot of blood, you may need a blood transfusion
How is blood pressure measured?
What causes low blood pressure?
Low blood pressure can happen when:
There are many problems that result in low blood pressure, including:
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Loss of blood, such as from an injury or during surgery
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Losing too much fluid (becoming dehydrated) from diarrhea, vomiting, or sweating a lot
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Heart problems, such as a heart attack or an abnormal heart rhythm
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Severe infections (sepsis)
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Severe allergic reactions
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Certain medicines
What are the symptoms of low blood pressure?
How can doctors tell if I have low blood pressure?
How do doctors treat low blood pressure?
Doctors need to treat the cause of low blood pressure. For example, if you're bleeding, they may do surgery to stop it. If you have an infection, they'll give you antibiotics. But whatever the cause, they need to raise your blood pressure.
The main treatment to raise your blood pressure is:
If you've lost a lot of blood, doctors may give you:
If your blood pressure is still low after you've had enough IV fluids and blood to fill up your blood vessels, doctors may give you medicines to raise your blood pressure. These medicines make your heart beat harder and make your blood vessels narrower. These medicines can be dangerous, so you'll be watched very closely while receiving them.
