BAV and blood pressure

[Lisa2]

I went for my yearly Echo this past Monday and my tech, who is coincidentally my sister-in-law, got a little excited because my BP was really elevated for me. It was 140/90. I know that my valve has been moderately leaky and that I am approaching surgery time. I'll find out tomorrow at the follow-up if it's now severely leaking, more stenosed, etc. My BP has been low for forever, or at least was. Has anyone else experienced a rise in BP with a leaky valve? I'm hoping it was just elevated because of the salty popcorn I had at the movies the day before

 

[tjay]

Please consider buying (if not already) $50 BP monitor from Costco or Walmart, and start monitoring BP yourself. They are very accurate.

 

[tjay]

I meant, the first and most important thing to do with your BP is to know your baseline, which can be done by taking several readings (e.g. at home under several conditions/times of the day, over a period of time). Once you know what your baseline BP is, although relevent, it's less important to know what (temporarily) causes it to elevate in situations such as being in doctor's office or having a salty meal.
I agree that BAV patients should have a well-controlled BP (e.g. <120/80).

 

[Lisa2]

Tjay, for years my BP has been 110/70 or 120/80 range. We do have a monitor and I must confess that I haven't been checking it because it's always been normal. I just started thinking and wondering if anyone has experienced a raise in blood pressure so many years after AVR and with a current leaky valve. I don't find much of use when I search the forums. I am not medically trained, but my understanding from what I read is that low pressure goes hand in hand with Aortic valve problems. Does regurgitation cause BP to raise?

 

[ottagal]

Lisa2,
First of all, best wishes with your appointment today! Let us know how it goes. .
I typically have BP on the lower end, but I have to admit when I get any kind of testing for my heart, my BP tends to rise during the testing due to being a little anxious. Hopefully, that is the case for you.

 

[scott.eitman]

My sister-in-law does that to my BP also! Actually, for me before OHS, my second number was way low. I was at my Optometrist (coincidentally , my father-in-law) about a year before my surgery and mine was about 120/0...yes zero) Now that is a leaky valve.

 

[river-wear]

My BP was always very low (110/55 or even 100/60) pre-surgery with a huge leak. Now it's typically around 110/70. I haven't seen a diastolic measurement below 65 since my valve was fixed - even when I was still on Metoprolol and Amiodarone. I don't take any medications now.

 

[Agian]

My sister-in-law does that to my BP also! Actually, for me before OHS, my second number was way low. I was at my Optometrist (coincidentally , my father-in-law) about a year before my surgery and mine was about 120/0...yes zero) Now that is a leaky valve.

You went to see your father-in-law for a new set of glasses and he told you you have no blood pressure?

 

[Lisa2]

That's funny, Scott. I love her. She's the best, even if she does cause my blood pressure to spike A 0? Wow!
Thanks for the responses , all. I'm thinking it was a one-off but I will start monitoring it. BP was 132/60 today. I will post about my results in another thread.

 

[Lisa2]

You went to see your father-in-law for a new set of glasses and he told you you have no blood pressure?

So funny. Every time I had my pulse taken before AVR the medical assistants would look at me funnily and then change arms. I've been told over the years that I must be dead. LOL

 

[Agian]

It's comforting to know I'm not the only hypochondriac with crazy relatives.

 

[Archer8]

I've known about my bicuspid valve since I was about 12, and I'm now 27. For most of my life I had a nice low blood pressure, around 110 or so over 70. About 5 years ago, my blood pressure went up to about 135 over 70. It was pretty stable there for a few years, but lately my blood pressure has been really variable (sometimes higher than that sometimes lower).

My valve has been getting leakier as I've gotten older, but I have no stenosis. When I was a teenager it was graded as a mild leak, and now it's graded as severe. I can't speak for anyone else, but I think it's fair to assume the increase in my systolic blood pressure could be due to my hearts increased squeezing to try and make up for the regurg. It could also be due to the fact that I'm just getting older, can't be sure, and of course everybody is different. I'm sure the results will be fine, good luck.

 

[Marcuse807]

From what I have read on this, as the leak gets worse the difference between the top and bottom number increases. In otherwords, the systolic gets higher and the diastolic lower. That said. I read an old medical paper on this which found that BP varied widely at different stages of the progression of BAV. I think labile hyper tension is also a symptom, which BP levels that can vary quite a bit. 140/90 would be considered borderline level 1 BP, though the consensus seems to be that high BP with BAV patients should be treated aggressively.

 

[tom in MO]

You got nervous at your Echo because you know that the valve is getting leaky. That's why your BP went up. My BP is always higher at the doctors than at home and it's even higher if it is an appointment that I am nervous about. I found that mild relaxation therapy while waiting keeps the BP down and the doctor's happy. It's called "white coat disease" by my internist.