Q.Hypertension is generally diagnosed when blood pressure readings consistently reach or exceed:

Hypertension Diagnostic Threshold

Blood pressure is the force blood exerts against artery walls as the heart pumps. Some pressure is essential — it is what keeps blood circulating to every organ. Hypertension is what happens when that pressure rises above a defined line and stays there.

The Actual Threshold

A person is diagnosed with hypertension when their blood pressure is above 140 mmHg systolic and/or above 90 mmHg diastolic — commonly written as more than 140/90 mmHg. For comparison, normal adult blood pressure is usually quoted as below 120/80 mmHg. Crossing either the systolic or the diastolic figure is enough to trigger the diagnosis; a person does not need to exceed both numbers.

Systolic and Diastolic, Explained

Blood pressure is always given as two numbers because the heart's pumping cycle has two phases:

• Systolic pressure (the higher, first number) is the peak pressure in the arteries at the exact moment the heart contracts and pushes blood out.
• Diastolic pressure (the lower, second number) is the pressure that remains in the arteries between beats, while the heart briefly relaxes and refills.

Both numbers are measured together, using a sphygmomanometer, and both matter for the diagnosis.

Why a Fixed Threshold Is Useful

Think of the threshold as a decision line rather than an arbitrary cut-off. Medical bodies arrived at 140/90 mmHg by studying large populations and observing where health risk begins to rise sharply — above this line, the risk of arteriosclerosis, heart attack, kidney failure, and stroke increases meaningfully. Below it, blood pressure is considered part of normal variation and does not, by itself, call for treatment. …