Management of hypertensive emergencies (original) (raw)

Management of Hypertensive Crises in Children: A Review of the Recent Literature

Frontiers in Pediatrics

Hypertensive emergency is a life-threatening condition associated with severe hypertension and organ damage, such as neurological, renal or cardiac dysfunction. The most recent guidelines on pediatric hypertension, the 2016 European guidelines and the 2017 American guidelines, provide recommendations on the management of hypertensive emergencies, however in pediatric age robust literature is lacking and the available evidence often derives from studies conducted in adults. We reviewed PubMed and Cochrane Library from January 2017 to July 2021, using the following search terms: “hypertension” AND “treatment” AND (“emergency” OR “urgency”) to identify the studies. Five studies were analyzed, according to our including criteria. According to the articles reviewed in this work, beta-blockers seem to be safe and effective in hypertensive crises, more than sodium nitroprusside, although limited data are available. Indeed, calcium-channel blockers seem to be effective and safe, in particul...

Therapeutic Approach to Hypertension Urgencies and Emergencies in the Emergency Room

High blood pressure & cardiovascular prevention : the official journal of the Italian Society of Hypertension, 2018

Hypertensive urgencies-emergencies are important and common events. They are defined as a severe elevation in BP, higher than 180/120 mmHg, associated or not with the evidence of new or worsening organ damage for emergencies and urgencies respectively. Anamnestic information, physical examination and instrumental evaluation determine the following management that could need oral (for urgencies) or intravenous (for emergencies) anti-hypertensives drugs. The choice of the specific drugs depend on the underlying causes of the crisis, patient's demographics, cardiovascular risk and comorbidities. For emergencies a maximum BP reduction of 20-25% within the first hour and then to 160/110-100 over next 2-6 h, is considered appropriate with a further gradual decrease over the next 24-48 h to reach normal BP levels. In the case of hypertensive urgencies, a gradual lowering of BP over 24-48 h with an oral medication is the best approach and an aggressive BP lowering should be avoided. Sub...