Hypertension: Causes, Symptoms, and Treatments
1. Choose one antihypertensive medication that you would prescribe for patients newly diagnosed with hypertension. Why did you choose this medication? How does this medication work in the body?
2. What would be the choice for second-line therapy? Why? How does this medication work in the body?
3. What are the parameters for monitoring the success of the therapy for the first medication?
4. Discuss specific patient education based on the prescribed therapy.
5. List one or two adverse reactions for the selected agent that would cause you to change therapy.
6. What lifestyle changes would you recommend for a patient with hypertension (in addition to medication)?
7. Describe one or two drug-drug or drug-food interactions for the selected agent.
Please include introduction and conclusion. thanks
Hypertension Treatment
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Hypertension Treatment
Hypertension is a chronic disease that, when left untreated or poorly managed, increases the risk of stroke or heart disease. There are several antihypertensive medications available for the treatment of hypertension, and this paper discusses one first-line and one second-line medication for newly diagnosed hypertension.
I would choose chlorthalidone, which is a thiazide diuretic, as the first-line treatment for a patient newly diagnosed with hypertension. Initially, the patient should take 25mg once daily. Thiazide diuretics have been linked to low morbidity and mortality rates (Garjon et al., 2020). They are also more effective in preventing cardiovascular complications than other first-line medications. Chlorthalidone, or thiazide diuretics in general, inhibit the sodium-chloride cotransporter, decreasing the reabsorption of sodium (Akbari & Khorasani-Zadeh, 2020). Consequently, this increases urine flow and decreases extracellular volume. As a result, there is low cardiac output and subsequent low blood pressure.
The second-line medication would be atenolol, which is a beta-blocker. According to Deshpande (2017), beta-blockers are effective in the treatment of hypertension and are associated with lower risks of stroke and heart disease. Atenolol binds to the beta-1 receptors and blocks the action of epinephrine, isoproterenol, and norepinephrine (Rehman, Sanchez, & Shah, 2020). By doing so, it reduces the heart rate and myocardial contraction, resulting in decreased cardiac output. Reduced cardiac output reduces blood pressure.
To monitor the success of chlorthalidone, I would use fluid status, cardiac rhythm, and blood pressure to monitor the success of the medication. According to Kerndt and Patel (2021), blood pressure and fluid status should be checked regularly to assess whether the medication is working and reduce adverse reactions to t. Reduced blood pressure is an indication that the drug is working. Serum electrolytes and uric acid levels should also be monitored.
Patient education would include dosage, which would be 25mg once daily, consumed with food. Also, the patient would be informed not to start taking over-the-counter medicine without first consulting the doctor to avoid drug interactions. Further, the patients should be informed that in case they miss a dose, they should take it as soon as they...