Low blood pressure is normally a good thing but it may need medical attention if not enough blood reaches the organs and causes symptoms such as dizziness and fainting.
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The symptoms associated with low blood pressure usually develop over time. These include:
Dizziness or light headedness
Shortness of breath
Fainting
Cold hands and feet
Feeling tired
Feeling weak and shaky
Often these symptoms become apparent when a person stands suddenly – “postural” (or orthostatic) hypotension. Symptoms that arise after eating a big meal indicate “postprandial” hypotension.
Low blood pressure can affect anyone in certain situations, such as standing for long periods in a hot place or following a period of intense stress or emotion. However, it’s when low blood pressure regularly causes symptoms that there may be other factors involved.
These include:
Heart conditions such as heart failure which mean your heart isn’t pumping effectively
Dehydration
Internal bleeding
Blood donation
Conditions involving your nervous system such as diabetes
Pregnancy
Allergic reaction to particular chemicals or drugs
Reaction to medications for heart conditions, high blood pressure or depression
Certain types of infection
Common Low Blood Pressure Symptoms
Unlike high blood pressure symptoms, which are poorly defined and often totally absent, low blood pressure symptoms tend to be classic and easily recognizable. The development of symptoms is considered an indicator that a patient should be evaluated to discover the cause of the low blood pressure, and to rule out any underlying problems. In general, though, blood pressure must fall to a fairly low value before symptoms develop.
Clincally, the value most often associated with the development of symptoms is 90/60, though this varies from person to person. Situations in which the blood pressure drops rapidly, rather than exists chronically at a low level, do not require the blood pressure to drop to 90/60 before symptoms develop. Instead, changes of about 20mmHg from baseline blood pressure have been shown to cause classic low blood pressure symptoms.
Classic symptoms of low blood pressure include:
Dizziness, or feeling like you’re standing on a rocking boat
Fainting
Changes in mental status (difficulty concentrating, confusion) or a sense of “impending doom” or anxiety
Changes in breathing patterns (fast, shallow breathing is common during an episode of low blood pressure)
Nausea
Suddenly feeling cold or clammy, or a rapid onset of pale skin
While all of these symptoms indicate that a visit to the doctor is needed, fainting or ongoing dizziness are especially alarming and warrant an immediate visit to either your own doctor or to the emergency room. If you experience fainting along with nausea, chest pain, or any type of weakness/numbness in your body, you should call 911 immediately. These symptoms may be indicators of stroke, heart attack, or dangerous problems with the nervous system.
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