More Americans, especially the elderly, now have their blood pressure under control, a new study finds. ‘It is hard to attribute the improvement to any particular factor,’ said study author Bernard M.Y. Cheung, an associate professor of medicine at the University of Hong Kong. His report appears in the Dec. 12 issue of Hypertension. ‘We have tried to see if the explanation lies in better awareness, detection or treatment. There is no statistically significant increase in these, so probably all of these contribute in a small way.’ Whatever the reason, the numbers from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey 1999-2004, which include more than 14,500 people, tell an encouraging story. Hypertension — high blood pressure — is a major risk factor for heart attack, stroke, heart failure and kidney failure. In the study, blood pressure was regarded as being under control at a reading below 140/90, or 130/80 for people with diabetes. From 1999-2000 and 2003-2004, the percentage of Americans aged 60 and older who met those criteria rose from 26.4 percent to 36.7 percent, the study found. Awareness of the importance of blood pressure control rose from 70.6 percent to 81 percent, and treatment rates […]