Causes of Hypertension

In 90 percent to 95 percent of people, it is difficult to pinpoint the exact cause of hypertension. In these individuals, the condition is called primary hypertension. When hypertension has an identifiable cause, it is called secondary hypertension. About 5 percent of people with hypertension fall into this category.

Health Tips from Dr. Healy: Video: What men need to know about their cholesterol Choose another disease or condition... Allergic Rhinitis Allergies, Food Allergy & Asthma Center Alzheimer's Disease Anxiety Aortic Aneurysms Arrhythmia Arthritis, Osteo- (OA) Arthritis, Rheumatoid (RA) Asthma Atopic Dermatitis Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) Back Pain Brain Tumor Bones, Joints & Muscles Center Breast Cancer Brain & Behavior Center Brain Tumor Cancer Center    Brain Tumor    Breast Cancer    Cancer Prevention    Clinical Trials    Colorectal Cancer    Endometrial Cancer    Living With and Beyond Cancer    Lung Cancer    Prostate Cancer    Skin Cancer Cardiomyopathy Cataracts Cholesterol Control Clinical Trials Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) Colorectal Cancer Congenital Heart Disease Congestive Heart Failure (CHF) Coronary Artery Disease (CAD) Crohn's Disease Depression Diabetes Center Diabetes, Type 1 Diabetes, Type 2 Digestive Disorders Center Eczema Endometrial Cancer Erectile Dysfunction (ED) Eye & Vision Center Fibromyalgia Food Allergies Gallstone Disease Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease (GERD) GERD Glaucoma Hay Fever Headache Heart Center Hepatitis A Hepatitis B Hepatitis C High Blood Pressure Hypertension Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy (HCM) Impotence Insomnia Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS) Living With and Beyond Cancer Losing Weight Lung Cancer Macular Degeneration Memory Loss Osteoarthritis (OA) Osteoporosis Parkinson's Disease Peptic Ulcer Prediabetes Prostate Cancer Respiratory Disorders Center Restless Legs Syndrome (RLS) Rheumatoid Arthritis (RA) Sexual & Reproductive Health Center Sinusitis Skin Cancer Sleep Apnea Sleep Center Stroke Type 1 Diabetes Type 2 Diabetes Ulcerative Colitis (UC) Weight Control More online resources What is your heart risk? Use our calculator to find out. America's Best Hospitals for Heart and Heart Surgery Hypertension-Related Clinical Trials Information Email this page Print this section

Some people have white coat hypertension--high blood pressure readings that are present only when they are examined by a physician. Whether to treat white coat hypertension with antihypertensive medication is a controversial question. Many specialists believe that people with white coat hypertension who do not have other risk factors for cardiovascular disease (such as high cholesterol levels or diabetes) do not need to take medication. Instead, they should adopt lifestyle measures such as eating a healthy diet and exercising regularly. However, the general consensus is that people with white coat hypertension who have organ damage from hypertension (for example, kidney or heart disease) need treatment with medication.

This section has more on:

• The causes of primary hypertension
• The causes of secondary hypertension