Hypertension occurs when blood being transported through the blood vessels exerts excessive force on the walls of the arteries. Long-term untreated hypertension can cause damage to the blood vessels and other organs in the body. "Medical Physiology: Principles For Clinical Medicine" by Rodney Rhoades and David R. Bell suggests that controlling hypertension with lifelong medication therapy is beneficial to people with hypertension while untreated hypertension can have harmful effects.
Eye damage
Little blood vessels supply the eyes with blood. Individuals who have long-term untreated hypertension may experience complications related to eyesight because of this disease. Hypertension can damage these tiny blood vessels, and when it does blood supply to the eyes can be reduced or blocked entirely. Blood can also leak into the eyes. This can lead to blurred or complete loss of vision.
Fluid buildup can also occur in the eyes due to leaky blood vessels. The result of this is impaired vision. The nerves in the eyes may begin to die if they are deprived of oxygen rich blood due to hypertension. High blood pressure can cause optic neuropathy--a condition in which the optic nerve is damaged due to a lack of blood supply.
Aneurysms
An aneurysm occurs when part of an artery--a blood vessel that transports oxygenated blood--becomes weak and bulges out like a balloon. If this ballooned area of the artery ruptures or bursts, dangerous bleeding can take place inside the body with life threatening consequences. An aneurysm can occur in the presence of untreated hypertension where blood pushes against the walls of the arteries with great force and damages arteries that may be caused by aging, smoking or atherosclerosis.
Heart Failure
Heart failure can occur when hypertension goes untreated. When a person has hypertension, the heart has to pump blood against increased blood pressures. This means that the heart has to work harder to get blood to all parts of the body. If this continues for an extended period of time, the heart can weaken and pump less blood to the rest of the body. This condition is known as heart failure.
Stroke
Cerebrovascular accident or brain attack are other names for a stroke, a condition in which blood supply to part of the brain is reduced or stopped altogether. When parts of the brain are deprived of the oxygen and nutrients that are transported in blood, brain cells in those areas begin to die. The Mayo Clinic states that uncontrolled hypertension can lead to a stroke because it can damage blood vessels that supply the brain with oxygen and nutrients by causing them to burst open, leak or become narrow.
References
- "Medical Physiology: Principles For Clinical Medicine"; Rodney Rhoades and David R. Bell; 2008
- Mayo Clinic: High blood pressure dangers: Hypertension's effects on your body
- Mayo Clinic: High Blood Pressure (Hypertension)
- National Institutes of Health Medline Plus: Untreated Hypertension
- National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute: What Are the Signs and Symptoms of High Blood Pressure
