Hypertension and color blindness in young men

Medical data from Selective Service registrants born from 1939 to 1941 were studied in Oregon and Colorado. Among 29,119 registrants with medical information (41.3% of all registrants), 1,073 (3.6%) had definite hypertension, and 1,226 (4.2%) had some type of color blindness. In both states, there was a highly significant association between the prevalence of hypertension and the prevalence of color blindness. Thus, definite hypertension was present in 6.0% of color clind individuals but in only 3.6% of those with unimparied color vision, while color blindness occurred in 6.8% with definite hypertension, in 5.8% with borderline hypertension, and in only 4.0% with normal blood pressure. The data did not differentiate among types of color blindness, and the reason for the association is not yet evident.