Hypertension makes your heart worker harder than it required to before. Over the space of several years, this additional force can result in the heart muscle changing into thicker and less effective at pushing the blood round. This permits fluid to build up in your lower ankles and legs, which causes them to swell up.
Swollen ankles can be a side effect of some blood pressure drugs, particularly calcium channel blockers, eg amlodipine, nifedipine etc These drugs make your small blood vessels open wider and, in some individuals, this will cause extra fluid to leak out of the blood vessels into the tissues. This fluid will gather round your ankles.
Are swollen ankles critical
In its early stages, ankle swelling is an inconvenience but does not cause any major problems. But, if it is left untreated over a long time frame, it would begin to put undesirable pressure on the blood vessels and tissues of the ankle.
This can result in problems similar to cellulitis where the skin gets infected and might result in abscesses if not treated, varicose veins and venous ulcers (ulcers on the outer layers of the dermis).
Can swollen ankles be treated
Diuretic medicine increase the quantity of fluid removed by your kidneys and this may also help to do away with any extra fluid from the body. This removes the build up of fluid from the tissues in your ankles.
In case your ankle swelling is because of taking calcium channel blockers, reducing the dose of your drugs will normally help. Or, in case your blood pressure is not totally managed, your physician could prescribe you a diuretic to assist lower your blood pressure further and remove the excess fluid.
You can help to reduce the swelling by sitting with your legs lifted up. This lets your blood circulation more freely and should help reduce the swelling.
