Diagnosis question....?

Question

My mom's blood pressure suddenly sky rocketed today. it is 150/90. She is a dialysis pateisnt (she has renal failure) and just had ear problems a week ago. She was given vitamin?dietary supp pills to fix the problem. She is disoriented, has headaches, has stomach aches, and is nauseous. Why has her blood pressure increased suddenly? Is it an emergency?

Answer 1

Hi, Kim - There are two issues here. 150/90 is a high blood pressure but not to the point where it usually causes symptoms and not to the point where it is a medical emergency. If her blood pressure stays at 150/90 over a long time, it will increase her long-term risk of strokes and heart disease, but it is unlikely to be causing her confusion, headaches, etc. It is possible that the pills she received are causing her blood pressure to go up, but it's hard to say without knowing what they are. Her blood pressure could also be increased from the stress of feeling so terrible or from being fluid overloaded.

However, blood pressure aside, her symptoms of disorientation, headaches and nausea are definitely concerning and need to be evaluated by a medical professional. Her disorientation, headaches, and nausea might be related to her "ear problems" depending on what the ear problems are. Certain kinds of strokes can lead to dizziness or disorientation. And as someone mentioned, her symptoms could also be due to infection or electrolyte abnormalities (sodium, potassium, calcium) that are not uncommon in people on dialysis.

It would be a good idea to get your Mom to see someone soon, either in an ER or an urgent care clinic. Without being able to tell how sick she is, I can't tell you how urgently she needs to be seen. My recommendation would be to call her primary doctor's nurse triage line. They will ask you some questions over the phone and tell you if she needs to be seen TONIGHT or if it can wait a day or two. Hope that helps. Good luck!

P.S. I don't know why Loving_heart made the comment that your mom's doctor is incompetent, but it does NOT sound like anyone has done anything wrong.

Answer 2

What was the last thing she ate? Was it salty? You'd be surprised how effective salt is at raising one's blood pressure.

If it can't be attributed to her eating, consider her mood or physical activity. Was she stressed? Is she moving around a lot? Is she vomiting? All these things will raise your blood pressure. Try to have her relax, even sleep, and take her blood pressure again.

If that doesn't help, consider how reliable your BP cuff is. Is it ever inaccurate? Is it properly lined up? Did she bend her arm during the measurement?

If after all this, give her nephrologist a call, or if she's on her way to her dialysis appointment, ask the nurse there. If you can't get a hold of either her doctor or dialysis nurse, take a drive over to the emergency room. She may be fluid overloaded or maybe her potassium is too high.

Answer 3

High blood pressure is very common in people with kidney failure. Kidney failure causes high blood pressure and high blood pressure causes kidney failure. High blood pressure increases the likelihood of a stroke or a heart attack. It can be controlled by removing fluid from the body and by taking blood pressure tablets. It may be interesting to note, that many dialysis patients have anaemia, it makes them weak and tired. Anaemia is easy to treat with injections of erythropoietin (EPO). Patients on EPO treatment may need additional iron, either in the form of tablets or injections. (Dialysis is the removal of body wastes and water from the blood. There are two types: haemodialysis (HD) and peritoneal dialysis (PD). In the UK, approximately half of the patients on dialysis have PD and the other half have HD - most patients can have either type. Both work in a similar way. Each method has two main processes:- Diffusion removes the body wastes and ultrafiltration removes the excess water.)
Taking your Mother’s condition into consideration and your reported pyrexia, you would be advised to contact your doctor or the dialysis centre at your earliest opportunity to seek advice. The symptoms could indicate a deterioration in her condition.
Hope this helps
Matador 89

Answer 4

150/90 is not emergency type high BP. Usually when the kidneys fail totally, the hi BP is not such a problem. But she could be having a stroke, or the flu, or an allergic reaction or needs dialysis. Should check with her Doctor.

Answer 5

All the answers above are correct. I don't need to repeat any of them, but I urge you to go to an MD today. She may need an emergency dialysis. Her electrolytes might be very high due to the infection or change in meds. The disorientation tells me there is something really wrong! Has she weighed herself today - and gained a few pounds in fluid weight? And when was her last dialysis? Go!

Answer 6

There are lots of other dialysis patients that can help answer this question at http://www.ihatedialysis.com - go to the forum and post a question - it's a really great group of people with experience and knowledge to share!

Answer 7

I am a health care professional, and I would consider this an emergency. If her BP is not normally this high and it came on suddenly, you need to get her to an ER. BP this high, going untreated, can lead to stroke, TIA, and heart attack. The headaches and stomach problems are other indicators of heart attack as well. The disorientation makes me worry about a TIA (mini stroke). Take her to the ER, or call an ambulance immediately. Time is the the most important factor when dealing with heart attack or stroke.

Answer 8

She needs to be evaluated for renal artery stenosis. Considering the fact that she is on dialysis, it is highly likely her kidneys are not getting adequate arterial supply. She needs to have an ultrasound.

Answer 9

Who is that doctor who is treating your mother. Take her to a nephrologist.
Change the doctor he appears to be incompetent.