Can high blood pressure cause heart disease?
High blood pressure generally leads to heart disease, as it may cause myocardial cell degeneration, lead to blood regurgitation, and induce changes in myocardial tissue, among other effects. The specific reasons are as follows:
1. Causing myocardial cell degeneration
High blood pressure usually increases the workload on the heart. Over time, this may lead to myocardial tissue proliferation and hypertrophy, resulting in myocardial cell degeneration and ultimately causing hypertensive heart disease.
2. Causing blood regurgitation
Meanwhile, long-term high blood pressure may also cause enlargement of the ventricular chamber, leading to incomplete closure of heart valves (valvular insufficiency), which causes blood regurgitation and impairs normal cardiac function, thereby triggering heart disease.
3. Inducing changes in myocardial tissue
Additionally, persistent high blood pressure may alter myocardial tissue structure, affecting the heart's electrophysiological functions, subsequently causing arrhythmias and contributing to heart disease.
Moreover, high blood pressure often promotes atherosclerosis. Over time, this may result in blockage or narrowing of the coronary arteries, leading to coronary atherosclerotic heart disease. Strictly following medical advice to take antihypertensive medications such as nifedipine sustained-release tablets, captopril tablets, and nimodipine tablets, combined with lifestyle modifications to maintain blood pressure within the normal range, can significantly reduce the risk of developing heart disease.