Hypertension, also known as high blood pressure, affects an estimated 50 million people in the United States. In some cases the causes of hypertension are not known. However, some conditions may increase your risk of developing hypertension. These are: hereditary factors, age, obesity, smoking, lack of exercise, other diseases such as kidney disease, poor diet with excessive salt intake. Hypertension often causes no symptoms, and you can have it for years without knowing it. In many cases, the only way a person can tell if he or she has hypertension is to have blood pressure checked.

Hypertension and Kidney Disease

Uncontrolled hypertension can damage many organs in your body including your kidneys. It also adds to the workload of your heart, which over time can enlarge and become weaker, and this increases your risk of stroke. Careful control of hypertension and hypertension symptoms lowers your risk of developing these complications.

High blood pressure can permanently damage the tiny blood vessels in the kidney that are used for filtering the blood. Over time, this damage will keep the kidneys from working properly. One of the functions of healthy kidneys is to control blood pressure by making a hormone called renin. The purpose of this hormone is to raise blood pressure and, thus, protect individuals from excessive reductions in blood pressure during upright posture or during modest levels of dehydration or salt depletion. One feature common to patients with hypertension is the excessive production of renin. Many antihypertensive drugs used for hypertension treatment effectively lower blood pressure by blocking the renin system. Research underway at The Rogosin Institute is exploring the effect of hypertension treatment with antihypertensive drugs on the renin system.

Although there is no cure for most causes of hypertension, there are curable forms. Patients are commonly referred to The Rogosin Institute for the evaluation of these potentially curable disorders. For the majority of patients who require drug treatment, effective medications are available that can lower blood pressure and decrease the risk for cardiovascular disease, stroke and kidney failure.

Rogosin Kidney Center and Hypertension

The Rogosin Kidney Center, as a leading comprehensive kidney treatment facility, has physicians who are experts hypertension treatment for patients with hypertension alone and patients with hypertension and kidney disease. Once you already have kidney disease, it is especially important to keep your blood pressure under control to prevent further kidney damage. Our team, which has experience treating the most difficult to treat cases, helps patients keep their blood pressure within a normal range.

For more information about hypertension treatment contact
The Rogosin Institute
Hypertension Center
212-746-1495