Increased risk of dementia in 50 year olds with raised blood pressure below treatment threshold, study finds

Fifty year olds with blood pressure that is higher than normal but below the conventional treatment threshold have increased risk of developing dementia in later life, latest findings from the long running UK Whitehall II study of civil servants1 have shown.

“Our work confirms the detrimental effects of midlife hypertension for risk of dementia,” said lead author Archana Singh-Manoux, from the National Institute of Health and Medical Research in Paris (INSERM), France, and University College London, UK.

She added, “It also suggests that at age 50, the risk of dementia may be increased in people who have raised levels of systolic blood …