The story is set in the United States: As he moves his desk, a 49-year-old man experiences unusual “palpitations” in his chest as well as “dizziness” and “sudden anxiety”. Worried, he immediately went to the hospital where a blood pressure test revealed abnormally high blood pressure of 280/160 mm Hg.
As a reminder, a “normal” blood pressure (this measurement corresponds to the pressure exerted by the blood on the walls of the arteries as it circulates in the blood vessels, both when the heart contracts and between two contractions) amounts to 120/80 mm Hg – in common parlance we say “12/8”. The threshold for arterial hypertension is set at 140/90 mm Hg.
Thanks to an emergency treatment, the doctors manage to lower the blood pressure of the 50-year-old, which remains above 210/125 mm Hg.
What is the cause of this exceptional hypertension? The man says he does not consume any drugs, does not follow any drug treatment, does not drink coffee or be addicted to cigarettes … patient takes “herbal dietary supplement” to “improve sexual vigor”.
A food supplement to plants to stimulate “sexual vigor”
However, the dietary supplement in question contains yohimbine, a molecule (extracted from an African tree, Pausinystalia yohimbe) used in the pharmaceutical industry to treat erectile failure, stimulate the cardiovascular system and … hypotension.
Fortunately, despite his surge in blood pressure, the man does not suffer from any visual, kidney or heart damage. He was able to go home with anti-hypertension treatment … and the ban on using yohimbine again!
“Patients who resort to self-medication should absolutely talk to their doctor because these” food supplements “are not without risk to health, they can also interfere with certain drug treatments” conclude the authors of this report, published in the Journal of Emergency Medicine.
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