NU 664B Week 6 Discussion 1: Patient with Hypertension Differential Diagnoses

NU 664B Week 6 Discussion 1: Patient with Hypertension

Differential Diagnoses

1. Hypertension – also called high blood pressure- is a condition where a patient’s blood pressure tends to be higher than normal. High blood pressure is characterized by changes in vision, headaches, fatigue, chest pain, ear pain, buzzing, and confusion (WHO, 2021). The condition relates to the case because the patient complained of having a change in vision, fatigue after medication, headache, and swollen legs. The presented symptoms confirm the diagnosis.
2. 2.     Aortic valve disease – is a health condition affecting the heart valve. The valve between the aorta and the left ventricle fails to function correctly, causing the blood not to flow in the correct direction through the heart (Wenn & Zeltser, 2022). The disease is characterized by fatigue, dizziness, shortness of breath, and chest pain. The condition was ruled out by dizziness, shortness of breath, and chest pain because the patient denied these symptoms.
3. White coat hypertension. White coat hypertension occurs when blood pressure is consistently elevated in the office but remains normal in out-of-office readings (Basile & Bloch, 2022). This is one example of a patient who has normal blood pressure at home but has elevated blood pressure readings in medical settings or in front of health care providers. However, based on the patient’s response, this patient consistently has elevated blood pressure readings and similar subjective findings. Her most recent blood pressure reading at home was 142/90 mmHg. a month ago
4.  Hyperaldosteronism – is a condition where the adrenal gland releases excess aldosterone that causes high blood pressure and reduces potassium levels in the body. It is characterized by high blood pressure, fatigue, headache, numbness, reduced potassium levels in the blood, and muscle weakness (Penn Medicine, 2021). The condition was ruled out by numbness, reduced potassium levels in the blood, and muscle weakness.

 Plan of Care for Hypertension

Pharmacology

Atenolol 50 mg daily due to bradycardia and tapered down to avoid rebound hypertension (Steinman and Reve, 2021).

Lisinopril 10 mg daily.

Non-Pharmacology

Change in lifestyle – the patient should adopt a healthy lifestyle by taking a healthy diet and engaging in physical exercises (Verma et al., 2021). The patient eats unhealthy meals and is not physically active, leading to weight gain and thus causing health complications such as heart attacks.

Healthy diets – the patient has no time or finance to afford healthy foods, so she takes food rich in saturated fat that could lead to further health complications (Verma et al., 2021). She should also reduce her intake of salt and alcohol.

Physical exercises – the patient should create a few hours daily to do physical exercises (Verma et al., 2021).

Labs/Diagnostics

A complete blood count (Dunphy et al., 2019).

CMP with GFR (Dunphy et al., 2019).

EKG (Dunphy et al., 2019).

Urinalysis (Dunphy et al., 2019).

Hemoglobin A1C (Dunphy et al., 2019).

Lipid Panel (Dunphy et al., 2019).

Referrals/Interprofessional Communication

A patient with hypertension should be referred to a specialist or a cardiologist if the blood pressure is severe, they have difficulties with the prescribed medication, young age hypertension, hypertension during pregnancy, and when the doctor suspects they have secondary hypertension.

Patient Education

The diagnosis – the patient should understand her current diagnosis, which should be done through education. The doctor should explain to the patient her underlying condition, how to manage it, and how she can prevent further complications.

Blood pressure readings – the patient should understand the readings after measuring her blood pressure (Elsevier, 2022). If her blood pressure is high and seems to worsen, she should talk to the doctor.

Possible complications – the possible complications of hypertension, when not managed correctly, include heart attack, aneurysm, vascular dementia, and stroke (Elsevier, 2022).

Diet – the patient should maintain a healthy diet with less salt and fats. Consume plenty of fruits, vegetables, and water (Elsevier, 2022).

Alcohol consumption – she should also reduce or stop consuming alcohol because it could worsen her condition (Elsevier, 2