High blood pressure, also called hypertension, affects roughly one in three American adults, and can cause significant health problems for the person with the condition. Hypertension can also occur in children. Along with beneficial lifestyle changes, medications are often required to effectively control blood pressure. Just as certain drugs can help control high blood pressure, the person with hypertension should also be aware that certain types of drugs can cause blood pressure to rise.
NSAIDs
Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, or NSAIDs, have been found to be very effective in relieving pain and inflammation. However, these same drugs have been found to sometimes reduce kidney function, causing a person to retain more body fluid. This can reduce the effectiveness of high blood pressure medications and cause a rise in blood pressure. Common NSAIDs include aspirin, ibuprofen and naproxen.
Oral Decongestants
Decongestants can cause a rise in heart rate while also causing the blood vessels to constrict. Each of these effects can cause a rise in blood pressure. Pseudoephedrine and phenylephrine are both common decongestants found in cough and cold medications.
Weight-Loss drugs
Many over-the-counter weight loss pills sold today contain different forms of caffeine found in such ingredients as green tea, yerba mate, and bitter orange, also known as guarana. Caffeine can increase both heart rate and blood pressure, a dangerous combination that can increase the risk for heart attack and stroke.
Antimigraine Drugs
In addition to narcotic and other pain-relief medications, drugs that constrict such blood vessels are often used to treat migraine headache. These drugs comprise the triptan class which includes almotriptan, naratriptan, sumatriptan, and zolmotriptan, any of which can produce a rise in blood pressure.
Oral Corticosteroids
Oral corticosteroids are potent anti-inflammatory drugs that can suppress the pain and swelling found in a variety of conditions that are associated with inflammation and hypersensitivity. These conditions can include rheumatoid arthritis, asthma, Crohn's disease, autoimmune diseases such as lupus, and many allergies. Steroids are also used to prevent a body's rejection of a transplanted organ. While clinically effective, these drugs can affect kidney function by increasing the reabsorption of both salt and water while reducing the kidney's ability to excrete water. Such effects on kidney function can cause the body to retain more water, resulting in an increase in blood pressure.
Transplant Antirejection Drugs
Persons who undergo organ transplantation of a kidney, liver, or heart usually need to take antirejection drugs for the rest of their lives to prevent rejection of the transplanted organ. Certain antirejection drugs such as cyclosporine, mycophenolate mofetil and sirolimus can cause high blood pressure, especially in persons who take these drugs for a long period of time.
References
- Resistant Hypertension: Diagnosis, Evaluation, and Treatment: A Scientific Statement From the American Heart Association Professional Education Committee of the Council for High Blood Pressure Research
- "Pharmacology in Rehabilitation"; Ciccone, Charles; 2002
