Exercise-induced Hypertension

Hello. thank you all for your posts regarding exercise and blood pressure. I recently had a cardio-pulmonary stress test. (CPX) The doctor is trying to determine if my long-standing symptoms of shortness of breath, low O2 sats, chest pressure, fatigue, and exercise intolerance are stemming from a problem with the heart or the lungs. During the CPX my systolic BP rose to 225. I'm not sure what the diastolic was. The technician was stopping the treadmill at that point and I was asking to stop at the same time. My final report says "no indication of cardiac or pulmonary disease". The systolic BP of 225 is not even mentioned in the report. Several hours after the test my O2 sats at home were 89,90,92 and I felt horrible. Is there anybody out there that may have had a similar experience?

Hello mriguy7. Thank you for sharing your story. I hope you are currently doing well and have found answers to the exercise induced hypertension. I was recently diagnosed with the same thing. It was discovered 2 weeks ago during a bicycle stress echo and then 2 days ago during an exercise R heart catheterization. I have not seen the doctor yet to discuss treatment options. A recent pulmonary stress test and cardiac stress MRI did not make mention of high BP in their reports so I am very confused. None of these recent tests indicated arterial blockages. However, the bike echo showed EKG changes consistent with myocardial ischemia. When I asked my doctor about this, she said this was a result of the blood pressure going so high during exercise and not necessarily from a blockage. She wants to prescribe BP meds and she does not even know what my resting blood pressures are. I have not exercised in years and feel this may just be due to being deconditioned. I plan to do some research on exercise induced hypertension before I start any medications because I am afraid my BP would get far too low when I am not exercising. I'll keep you posted on anything I learn about this. Please let me know how you are currently doing.

Hello Schmidtsl. I am 62 years old and recently diagnosed with exercise induced hypertension after a cardiopulmonary stress test, bicycle echo, and right heart catheterization. I have not exercised since 2006 when a cardiac event brought me to the ER with heart attack-like symptoms. My symptoms have persisted since that day. I have not been able to build any exercise tolerance without s.o.b., fluid retention, and pressure sensations in my chest. Stress tests in the past never revealed exercise induced hypertension. My BP's are normal during the day. I attributed the exercise hypertension to being terribly de-conditioned but my cardiologist says that is not the reason. She is not sure at this point if I should start meds or not. She is considering a CT angiogram even though the CPX, Cardiac Stress MRI, and Bicycle echo are normal. I'm very confused. Wondering how you are doing as well as the many people that have posted with reports of exercise induced hypertension. How are you feeling? have you learned any more about it or joined a trial? Thanks.

Hello schmidtsl. Just wondering how you are doing with your exercise induced hypertension. I have been diagnosed with the same. BP's are normal when not exercising. My doctors have not prescribed anything yet. I believe they are considering ordering a coronary angiogram. Are you being treated for this condition? What did your PCP advise? Thanks.

I am a 66 year old previously active woman who has played tennis for 55 years. I have asthma and mild to moderate emphysema. In the previous year I've had both a heart cath and nuclear stress test that were normal. Recently I have been experiencing heart issues including non-sustaining V-Tach. Lately when I walk, play tennis, golf or attempt mild exercise my chest gets tight, I have difficulty breathing and my leg/ thigh muscles feel like they are going to give out. Last week I had a treadmill stress test that was stopped because of those same symptoms. At about three minutes my HR was over 140 and my blood pressure reached 206/65. Needless to say this scared me. I've always had very low blood pressure. When I called to ask about the results I was told by the nurse that my EKG was normal and everything was fine. I asked the nurse to go back and ask the doctor why then did my blood pressure go so high etc. He told her that my high BP "could be an exaggerated response to the test." There was no further explanation. I have since found out through my own research that there is something called "exercise induced hypertension." Does anyone know what causes this so-called phenomenon? I'm scared. I can't even play golf or walk at a brisk pace without feeling like I am going to collapse. Since my doctor didn't seem to be alarmed I don't know what to think. This can't be normal.

Hello @nancyjac,

Welcome to Connect. You may notice that I moved your message and combined it with this existing discussion, where I hope you will connect with other members talking about exercise-induced hypertension.
If you click on VIEW & REPLY in your email notification, you will see the whole discussion and can join in, meet, and participate with other members talking about their or their loved ones' experiences.

You might be interested in reading this published study about exercise-related hypertension and whether that could be a predictor of some heart conditions:https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4315351/

I'm tagging @schmidtsl @bertaw @mriguy7 and Mentors @hopeful33250 and @predictable as they may be able to share their experiences as well. @nancyjac, I can understand your worry especially with matters related the heart; would you consider getting a second opinion, perhaps at a sports cardiology clinic?

Thank you for sharing with me Mary. My blood pressure is normal at rest also. It used to be very low. I was put on Metoprolol to control my VTACH. It made my blood pressure way too low and my pulse was often in the 40's. They reduced the dosage of Metoprolol and added Propafenone which has worked controlling my VTACH.

I feel like they are dismissing my concerns as well. My cardiologist specializes in electrical issues of the heart. He says he does not treat "exercise induced hypertension." One person did suggest that I go to a Sports Cardiologist. We live in Florida. The only ones I've found are at the Cleveland Clinic and in North Carolina. I am seeing my Primary Care Doctor tomorrow. She is a really good doctor and I have a feeling she will not dismiss my concerns and will do her due diligence and research to figure it out.

I will keep posting and share what I'm being told. Thank you so much.

Nancy Jacobs

Thank you @kanaazpereira. I would definitely be interested in finding a sports cardiology clinic. We live in Florida and I've done searches on sports cardiology clinic and have not found one in Florida. The Cleveland Clinic has one, but there doesn't appear to be one near us. Thank you for the article. I have read it and will read it again. I am seeing my primary care doctor tomorrow and I'm hoping she can help with advice as well.

I was just diagnosed with exercise induced hypertension. Blood pressure is usually low any other time. I was wondering if you pursued the nephrology doctor? Have you gotten any relief? I hope so. Nancy Jacobs

I would advise getting a 2nd opinion.