High Blood Pressure they can be. “One of the hallmarks of high blood pressure is that is typically has no symptoms whatsoever,” says Gregory Katz, M.D., a cardiologist at NYU Langone Health in New York City. “That includes most skin manifestations. It is very unlikely that a rash anyone would be able to notice would be related to blood pressure.
“And despite this standard, there are occasions when there is onset of a new rash at the same time that blood pressure raises,” he says. “Under those circumstances, that is absolutely a reason to check in with your doctor.”
For example, if you’ve already been diagnosed with high blood pressure and are being treated with a type of medication called an angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitor, says Dr. Zodin, there’s a chance you’ll notice skin problems, too. Also, some skin conditions that cause a rash raise your risk of high blood pressure. Whatever the cause, though, Dr. Katz says that fixing the underlying skin problem can help keep your blood pressure at a healthier level.
So there are a few potential ways that hypertension and skin issues might be linked. Here’s a deeper look at them, and when to see your doctor.
Skin Conditions Linked to High Blood Pressure
While high blood pressure probably won’t cause skin trouble on its own, the reverse is more likely to be true: Some skin conditions could heighten your tonic pressure risk. These include:
Psoriasis
An immune-mediated disease that’s marked by inflammation, psoriasis results in elevated plaques and scales of skin that can look like a rash in the early going. The National Psoriasis Foundation notes that the condition affects about 3% of the U.S. adult population.
People with psoriasis have a higher prevalence and risk of developing high blood pressure compared to the general population, according to research in the Journal of Hypertension. “It’s not clear whether psoriasis directly increases blood pressure, or whether there’s something else that increases risk of both psoriasis and high blood pressure,” says Dr. Katz. Either way, he says, people with psoriasis should be screened regularly for hypertension.
Eczema
Eczema refers to a group of seven noncontagious inflammatory skin conditions that lead to rough, scaly patches, dry skin, rashes, and blisters, raising the risk of skin infections, according to the National Eczema Association.
While studies have been conflicting over the years, a review of research in the British Journal of Dermatology found that eczema might increase the risk of high blood pressure in people with moderate-to-severe forms of the disease. As with psoriasis, “anyone with eczema should have their blood pressure monitored periodically,” says Dr. Katz.
Angioedema
“Angioedema is similar to hives, where it’s swelling, but you can look at hives as a bad rash or welt. That’s swelling right at the surface and angioedema is swelling deeper down that’s also caused by allergic reactions commonly,” he says. “There’s also non-allergic angioedema where there’s no specific allergic reaction, it just occurs.” Blood pressure medications are among the medications that have been known to cause angioedema, Dr. Katz says.
High Blood Pressure Medications That Might Cause Rash
One category of medications used to control blood pressure might cause a rash and could have other repercussions as well, says Cheng-Han Chen, M.D., a cardiologist/physician and the medical director of the structural heart program at Memorial Care Saddleback Medical Center in Laguna Hills, CA. “All medications have possible allergy-related implications that can manifest with a rash,” Dr. Chen says. “There’s a certain class of medication called ACE inhibitors that are commonly used for blood pressure, and these are more prone to cause allergic reactions such as angioedema. That’s because the chemical pathway in the body used for these medications can intersect with the pathways the body uses in handling allergens.”
ACE (angiotensin-converting enzyme) inhibitors, such as Aceon (perindopril), Altace (ramipril), Capoten (captopril), Lotensin (benazepril), Mavik (trandolapril), Monopril (fosinopril), Vasotec (enalapril) and Zestril (lisinopril), treat high blood pressure (hypertension) by preventing an enzyme from producing angiotensin 2 — a substance that narrows blood vessels. “This lowers your blood pressure and allows your blood to flow more easily,” the Mayo Clinic says.
Although these are treated for high blood pressure, they may also come with mainline express concerns.
“Individuals may develop a rash on an ACE inhibitor or another blood pressure medication and should be treated for their blood pressure rather than stopping treatment for high blood pressure,” said Chen. “There are different classes of medication for blood pressure and some may have less of an allergic reaction than others, so your health care provider should switch your meds until they find one that you can tolerate.”
Treating Skin Rashes
Addressing skin problems always starts with zeroing in on what’s leading to the blemish, according to Dr. Katz. If you have a disease that’s causing a skin problem and raising blood pressure, often treating the disease will take care of both, he explains.
So you’ll control psoriasis or eczema and the inflammation in those conditions and in the process you can get skin health back and potentially help your blood pressure, too, Dr. Katz says.
In other cases, treatment may mean simply swapping your medication if you have angioedema.
“In many other cases, there may not be a clear link, and then you would treat the blood pressure separately from the skin condition,” Dr. Katz says.
Medically Reviewed By Gina J. McIntyre, MD.
Lifestyle Changes to Help Manage Blood Pressure
When it comes to high blood pressure, the condition can be managed in many cases by lifestyle changes, Dr. Katz says. And he recommends:
- Regular aerobic exercise
- Lowering sodium
- Maintaining a healthy weight
- Making an effort to reduce stress
- Doing what you can do to improve sleep
“Every person is a bit different in terms of what raises blood pressure and how much needs to be done on the lifestyle front to lower the numbers,” he says. “For some people, cutting back on sodium normalizes their blood pressure, and for others, salt seems to have no impact.”
Sleep deprivation seems to be a common denominator for many, though, Dr. Katz says. When you are sleep deprived, blood pressure tends to rise and other issues like sleep apnea make it challenging to control hypertension.
Talk to Your Doctor
If you’re on medication for high blood pressure — especially an ACE inhibitor — and develop a new rash that you haven’t experienced before, it’s worth chatting with your health provider to see if it might be worth trying new meds. If it happens and nothing changes, chatting with a dermatologist can help you get to the bottom of what’s going on on your skin.
Depending on your condition and the severity, there are myriad routes to keeping high blood pressure and a skin condition like psoriasis or eczema under control, Dr. Libby notes.
“People who have high blood pressure and a skin condition like psoriasis or eczema would want to work closely with their board-certified dermatologist for the skin condition and their family physician or internist or cardiologist for the hypertension,” he says. “They can use medications if they have high blood pressure and they might also use medications to keep the skin conditions under control. In others, lasers, stress management techniques, and dietary modifications can play a role in helping both spots clear and the hypertension improve.
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