Lifestyle Changes and Surgical Treatment for Hypertension in the Elderly

Hypertension is a major cardiovascular risk factor that increases morbidity and mortality in the elderly because, numerous factors contribute to development and progression of hypertension in elderly patients, including excessive salt intakes, obesity, physical inactivity and stress. Hypertension treatment usually results in a combination of both, pharmacologic and non-pharmacologic measures. These latter are an essential part of treatment and cannot be replaced by the medication. Non pharmacologic management known as lifestyle modifications has a pivotal role in non-hypertensive and hypertensive individuals. In case of non-hypertensive or pre-hypertensive patients it can prevent hypertension development and in hypertensive people it has the capacity to lower blood pressure levels as well as modify cardiovascular complications. Older people tend more often to treatment resistance so it is increasingly necessary to have other therapeutic resources for patients with difficult control of disease. Minimally invasive techniques are developing that might improve the course of the disease and prevent its complications by a more extended time.In this chapter, we will review components of nonpharmacological treatment of hypertension focusing on the geriatric patient.