Hypertension - Signs and Symptoms

Signs and Symptoms

Hypertension is rarely accompanied by any symptoms, and its identification is usually through screening, or when seeking healthcare for an unrelated problem. A proportion of people with high blood pressure reports headaches (particularly at the back of the head and in the morning), as well as lightheadedness, vertigo, tinnitus (buzzing or hissing in the ears), altered vision or fainting episodes. These symptoms however are more likely to be related to associated anxiety than the high blood pressure itself.

On physical examination, hypertension may be suspected on the basis of the presence of hypertensive retinopathy detected by examination of the optic fundus found in the back of the eye using ophthalmoscopy. Classically, the severity of the hypertensive retinopathy changes is graded from grade I–IV, although the milder types may be difficult to distinguish from each other. Ophthalmoscopy findings may also give some indication as to how long a person has been hypertensive.