hypertension

/ˈhaɪpərˌtɛnʃən/

/ˈhaɪpətɛnʃən/

If you've got hypertension, you've got high blood pressure, and you're likely to be on medication to bring it down to a safe level.

Hyper- is a prefix that means "over" or "beyond" — if you're hyper you're wildly energetic. Tension means "stretching" or "straining." Hypertension, therefore, means "straining beyond." With hypertension, your blood pressure is abnormally high, causing a strain on your blood vessels. This condition can result in serious health problems, such as heart attack and stroke.

Definitions of hypertension

1. noun

   a common disorder in which blood pressure remains abnormally high (a reading of 140/90 mm Hg or greater)
   synonyms: high blood pressure

   antonyms:

   hypotension

   abnormally low blood pressure

   types:

   essential hypertension, hyperpiesia, hyperpiesis

   persistent and pathological high blood pressure for which no specific cause can be found

   malignant hypertension

   severe hypertension that runs a rapid course and damages the inner linings of the blood vessels and the heart and spleen and kidneys and brain

   secondary hypertension

   hypertension that is secondary to another disease

   white-coat hypertension

   temporary rise in blood pressure in the doctor's office

   portal hypertension

   increase in blood pressure in the veins of the portal system caused by obstruction in the liver (often associated with alcoholic cirrhosis), causing enlargement of the spleen and collateral veins

   type of:

   cardiovascular disease

   a disease of the heart or blood vessels