A slight change in screening of the silent killer, high blood pressure, will improve the management of the condition with long term benefits, said health experts after the American Heart Association (AHA) lowered the threshold for high blood pressure by saying it should be treated at a reading of 130/80 mm Hg instead of the previous limit of 140/90.

A lot younger population in their 40s instead of the earlier 50s could be at risk with the change in the readings. The new guidelines say doctors now recognise that complications 'can occur at those lower numbers', in the first update to comprehensive US guidelines on blood pressure detection and treatment since 2003.