Low Blood Pressure (cont.)

Low Blood Pressure (Hypotension) Slideshow Pictures

Dehydration Slideshow Pictures

Medical Author:

Benjamin Wedro, MD, FACEP, FAAEM

Dr. Ben Wedro practices emergency medicine at Gundersen Clinic, a regional trauma center in La Crosse, Wisconsin. His background includes undergraduate and medical studies at the University of Alberta, a Family Practice internship at Queen's University in Kingston, Ontario and residency training in Emergency Medicine at the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center.

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Medical Editor:

Melissa Conrad Stöppler, MD, Chief Medical Editor

Melissa Conrad Stöppler, MD, is a U.S. board-certified Anatomic Pathologist with subspecialty training in the fields of Experimental and Molecular Pathology. Dr. Stöppler's educational background includes a BA with Highest Distinction from the University of Virginia and an MD from the University of North Carolina. She completed residency training in Anatomic Pathology at Georgetown University followed by subspecialty fellowship training in molecular diagnostics and experimental pathology.

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Heart

The heart is an electrical pump. Problems with either the pump or the electricity can cause problems with low blood pressure.

If the heart beats too quickly, blood pressure may fall because there isn't enough time for the heart to refill in between each beat (diastole). If the heart beats too slowly, there may be too much time spent in diastole when blood is not flowing.
If the heart muscle has been damaged or irritated, there may not be enough pumping force to maintain blood pressure. In heart attack (myocardial infarction), enough heart muscle may be stunned so that the heart is too weak to pump effectively.
The valves of the heart allow blood to flow in only one direction. If a valve fails, blood can regurgitate backwards, minimizing the amount that will flow out to the body. If a valve becomes narrowed (stenotic), then blood flow may be decreased. Both situations may cause hypotension.