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Hypertension- The Heart’s Hidden Disease

1,254 views · Published 8 November 2014 · 1:40 · Indexed 30 October 2026

Channel: Lee Health · 2014 · Science & Technology

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It is silent and potentially deadly.

“Hypertension is often known as the ‘silent killer’ because most patients have no symptoms at all,” says Lee Memorial Health System primary care physician Dr. Gary Goforth.

People often fail to appreciate the affect hypertension or high blood pressure has on their heart health and the risk it adds to having a cardiovascular event.

“You don’t know how much it’s effecting you until you have that heart attack or stroke. And so staying on top of it and making sure you have your blood pressure under control is a good thing,” says Dr. Goforth.

Your blood pressure refers to the force exerted against blood vessels as the heart pumps. If it’s too high, it’s pumping too hard. Experts stress the importance of getting hypertension under control.

“It’s normal for blood pressure to go up when you’re stressed or you’re exercising. If it didn’t go up that would be a problem because blood pressure is needed to perfuse the organs. But when it’s persistently elevated at that level then it puts you at risk.”

The trend is to diagnose hypertension at its earliest and most treatable stage. Doctors find lifestyle changes, instead of medications, may be all that’s needed for people with mild cases.

“Asking patients to lose weight, reduce salt in their diet, reduce alcohol intake - all things that are very effective in lowering blood pressure and preventing them from needing medicines,” Dr. Goforth says.

Shedding light on hypertension is the first step in uncovering your risk. 

View More Health Matters video segments at leememorial.org/healthmatters/ 

Lee Memorial Health System in Fort Myers, FL is the largest network of medical care facilities in Southwest Florida and is highly respected for its expertise, innovation and quality of care. For nearly a century, we’ve been providing our community with everything from primary care treatment to highly specialized care services and robotic assisted surgeries.

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