Low-grade fever and headache signal the onset of an inflammatory process in the body or an exacerbation of a chronic disease. In each specific case, painful sensations have different localization and intensity, so it is difficult to independently determine the source of the problem. If you have prolonged headaches combined with fever, you should consult a doctor who will determine the cause of the disease and suggest the most effective treatment regimen.
What is blood pressure?
The heart is the main muscle that constantly pumps blood throughout the body. First, blood with low oxygen levels enters the lungs, where it is enriched with oxygen. The oxygenated blood is then pumped by the heart throughout the body, feeding muscles and cells. The process of pumping blood creates pressure - blood pressure.
Pressure is measured with a special device - a stethoscope. If his indicator remains 140/90 mm Hg. Art. and higher for a long period, this indicates the presence of hypertension.
How does a headache appear?
A headache is usually called pain that is localized above an imaginary line connecting the outer corner of the eyes, the top points of the ears, and running across the back of the head. Anything below this line is called neck, ear or facial pain. This division simplifies diagnosis.
What can hurt your head? It turns out that the brain is completely devoid of pain receptors. Any headache is caused by irritation of pain receptors in tissues such as:
- pericranium;
- skin and subcutaneous fat;
- muscles, including the muscular walls of blood vessels;
- eyeball tissue;
- mucous membranes of the paranasal sinuses (maxillary and frontal).
Most often, headaches are caused by spasm of intracranial or subcutaneous vessels.
Symptoms and causes of high blood pressure
The main accompanying symptoms of high blood pressure may include:
- Headache. May last for several days.
- Nausea. There is a feeling of discomfort in the stomach, accompanied by vomiting.
- Dizziness.
- Fuzzy, blurry vision. Often sees double.
- Bleeding from the nose.
- Cardiopalmus.
- Dyspnea.
If you have high blood pressure and temperature along with one of these symptoms, you should immediately consult a doctor.
If hypertension is left untreated and uncontrolled, excessive pressure on artery walls can cause damage to blood vessels and vital organs. Common consequences are:
- stroke;
- heart attack;
- heart and kidney failure;
- blood clot formation;
- the occurrence of aneurysms;
- kidney disease;
- partial or complete loss of vision;
- metabolic disorders in the body;
- problems with memory and perception.
High blood pressure and temperature can occur suddenly, without any apparent reason. And they can also be the cause of serious diseases, among which are:
- kidney disease (pheochromocytoma);
- disruption of the thyroid gland, leading to increased production of hormones (thyrotoxic crisis);
- autonomic disorders, expressed in the occurrence of panic attacks (vegetative crisis).
These diseases are often accompanied by high blood pressure and a temperature of 37 degrees or higher.
Other factors leading to high blood pressure are:
- Age. The risk of developing hypertension increases with age.
- Heredity.
- Overweight and obesity.
- Floor. It is believed that among men the risk of developing this disease is much higher.
- Sedentary lifestyle.
- Smoking.
- Alcohol abuse.
- Using large amounts of salt in the diet.
- Eating fatty and junk food.
- Stress, nervous tension.
- Diabetes.
- Pregnancy.
Treatment
A patient with fever and headache should be kept in a quiet environment and put to bed. It is recommended to ventilate the room where the patient is located frequently, maintain optimal humidity and air temperature - approximately 20 degrees Celsius. It is necessary to provide plenty of fluids - water, warm milk with honey, herbal tea, fruit juice. This will help reduce the concentration of toxins in the body and improve well-being.
To get rid of headaches and fever, use aspirin, paracetamol, ibuprofen or other pain relievers and antipyretics. After the pain has decreased and you feel better, you need to go to see a doctor.
Pheochromocytoma
Pheochromocytoma, a tumor that occurs in the adrenal glands, is a very rare disease and, as a rule, is not malignant. The tumor secretes hormones that cause either intermittent or constant high blood pressure and a temperature of 38 or more.
If therapy is not started in the initial stages of its formation, it can lead to serious and even life-threatening damage to other body systems, especially the cardiovascular system. This pathology can occur in people of any age, but the peak incidence occurs between 30 and 50 years.
Main symptoms
There are also cases in which symptoms do not appear at all. The tumor is detected during a diagnostic test. Therefore, it is so important to contact a specialist in time.
Patients with pheochromocytoma typically present with 3 main symptoms
- headache
- sweating
- rapid heartbeat against the background of high blood pressure, sometimes with a temperature of 38 with a tendency to increase.
Other symptoms that are common are: nausea, weakness, anxiety, abdominal pain, weight loss.
Treatment
For benign tumors, treatment is carried out with surgery. In rare cases, it may be malignant and cannot be treated with surgery. In this case, radiation or chemotherapy is prescribed.
Benign pheochromocytoma is highly treatable. But its detection during pregnancy increases the risk of death for both mother and fetus. That is why it is so important to detect the disease in time.
Diagnostics
If you have a headache at normal blood pressure, consult a doctor to diagnose the condition of the body. Severe consequences and complications may occur, so it is important to start treatment on time.
- Lab tests. These include general blood and urine analysis, blood biochemistry. Using methods, the doctor identifies the condition of the body. Evaluates the functionality of the circulatory, immune, and urinary systems.
- Electroencephalogram. The technique is carried out during the day and at night. The state of neurons, nerve fibers, and the conduction of impulses are determined. It is possible to determine the part of the brain where the abnormalities occur. High or low blood pressure is detected.
- Pressure measurement. Since the most common cause of headache is increased blood pressure, the patient should systematically measure blood pressure. If it remains normal, other diagnostic methods are performed.
- CT, MRI. These are methods that use magnetic resonance. The structure and deviation of the structure of body parts is revealed. For frequent headaches, the brain is examined. It is possible to detect a tumor, edema, abscess, cysts, inflammatory diseases of the nerves, and changes in blood vessels.
Interesting: Causes and treatment of psychosomatic headaches
Thyrotoxic crisis
Hyperthyroidism is a very life-threatening disease, so at the first sign it is necessary to call an ambulance.
The thyroid gland, located on the front of the neck, is responsible for producing hormones necessary for the normal functioning of all cells in the body.
Under certain conditions, it becomes very active and begins to produce too much of the hormone. This condition is the first stage of the disease and is called hyperthyroidism.
People suffering from hyperthyroidism have problems with the activity of other internal organs, which leads to symptoms such as increased sweating, feeling hot, and weight loss.
The next stage of the disease begins when the level of thyroid hormones in the blood becomes extremely high, symptoms worsen and a thyrotoxic crisis occurs.
High blood pressure and a temperature of 39, and sometimes reaching 41 degrees, are the main signs indicating the onset of a crisis.
Reasons for development
One of the main causes of thyrotoxic crisis is advanced hyperthyroidism, which has not been subjected to the necessary treatment. Other factors that provoke this condition include:
- injuries;
- stress;
- lung infections;
- stopping medications to treat hyperthyroidism;
- treatment with radioactive iodine;
- heart disease and heart attack;
- pregnancy.
Symptoms
Symptoms indicating the onset of a crisis are:
- cardiopalmus;
- very high temperature;
- chest pain;
- breathing problems;
- disorientation;
- anxiety and irritability;
- increased sweating;
- weakness;
- heart failure.
If you have a fever, very strong heartbeat, confusion and disorientation in space, you should immediately consult a doctor.
Diagnostics
To determine thyrotoxic crisis, the following studies are carried out:
- to determine the level of red blood cells, white blood cells and blood sugar;
- on liver function;
- to determine the level of thyroid hormones.
Treatment
People experiencing a thyrotoxic crisis are unable to carry out normal activities and should be taken to hospital immediately. Treatment takes place in a hospital under the supervision of a doctor.
Therapy consists of supporting normal functioning of the body and trying to reduce the production of thyroid hormones.
It includes:
- administration of intravenous solutions and electrolytes;
- if necessary, connection to oxygen;
- to reduce temperature, take antipyretics;
- intravenous corticosteroids;
- medications that block the production of thyroid hormones;
- iodide to block the production of thyroid hormones;
- drugs called beta blockers.
Thus, thyrotoxic crisis requires immediate emergency medical attention. If left untreated, it can cause heart failure and also cause the lungs to quickly fill with fluid. To prevent its development, it is necessary to regularly check the thyroid gland, as well as take the necessary blood tests.
Vegetative crisis
In other words, a panic attack is expressed in the form of a sudden, painful and inexplicable attack of fear, anxiety, accompanied by various somatic symptoms.
How does it manifest itself?
Often diagnosed between the ages of 20 and 40. Moreover, women get sick twice as often as men. The first crisis often occurs in a healthy person without any apparent reason, but sometimes it is triggered by stress, coffee abuse, or the approach of menstruation.
It manifests itself as an increase in anxiety within a few minutes, followed by a series of autonomic disorders:
- feeling of lack of oxygen;
- heartbeat;
- tachycardia;
- pain in the left side of the chest;
- trembling in the body, similar to chills;
- increased sweating;
- weakness;
- dizziness;
- discomfort or pain in the abdomen;
- nausea; vomit;
- frequent urination.
Causes and symptoms
The reasons leading to the development of vegetative crises are still not fully understood. Factors contributing to the occurrence of this disease include:
- genetic predisposition;
- hormonal disbalance;
- frequent stress;
- psycho-emotional instability;
- endocrine diseases;
- long-term use of strong medications;
- neurotic disorders;
- brain diseases;
- experience of domestic violence.
Vegetative crisis is a serious disease with frequently recurring episodes. Due to its paroxysmal nature, a person develops a strong fear of future attacks, which leads to withdrawal and avoidance of crowded places. The most common symptom that occurs with this form of the disease is high blood pressure and temperature of 37 or more. Less common is low blood pressure with high temperature.
Diagnostics
This disorder is very difficult to diagnose. To establish a diagnosis, it is necessary to completely exclude diseases with similar symptoms, such as epilepsy, asthma, etc. In addition, it is very similar to common mental disorders - phobia, schizophrenia, depression.
After a detailed examination of the patient, the doctor needs to establish friendly contact with him and convey to his consciousness the essence of the disease and how attacks can be prevented. The main thing is to convey to him that despite the severity of panic attacks, he has no reason to fear for his life.
Treatment
For those people who have learned to stop a crisis on their own, the anxiety of waiting for the next attack is significantly reduced, helping to improve their general condition.
There are two groups of drugs that help prevent crises: antidepressants and tranquilizers. The former affect the exchange of norepinephrine and serotonin in the brain.
They work very slowly and the effect of their use appears only after 3-4 weeks. The second ones are much faster. The effect is felt within a few days. But they become addictive very quickly, so taking them for more than 1.5 months is not recommended.
In addition to drug therapy, patients are prescribed psychotherapy. Traditional medicine recommends including bananas with nuts in the diet, as well as tinctures of motherwort, valerian, immortelle, and hawthorn.
To quickly stop the crisis, you can chew 1-2 tablets of diazepam or 1 tablet of anaprilin. Sometimes in combination with 20 drops of Valocordin or Corvalol. It is very important to learn to breathe slowly and deeply during a crisis.
Preventing high blood pressure
Before resorting to preventive measures on your own, you should consult with your doctor. A general recommendation for reducing high blood pressure is lifestyle changes. To do this you need:
- do regular exercise;
- stop smoking and drinking alcohol;
- change your diet (abstain from unhealthy fatty foods, include more fresh fruits and vegetables, foods high in unsaturated omega fatty acids);
- reduce salt intake;
- lose weight if your weight is significantly higher than normal;
- eliminate caffeine consumption;
- stop drinking energy drinks;
- learn to manage stressful situations;
- sleep at least 7-8 hours a day.
Following these simple measures will significantly reduce the risk of high blood pressure and related diseases.
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