Young kids with type 1 diabetes are at greater risk for high blood pressure than their nondiabetic peers are. And when they get it, it persists, finds a recent study.

Researchers looked at about 850 children, ranging in age from 6 to 19, all with type 1. Almost 4 percent of those under the age of 16 had blood pressure levels higher than the 97th percentile for children their age. For those 16 or older, 13.9 percent were above the 97th percentile. Those with higher blood pressure also had higher blood glucose and body mass index levels. And those who registered high blood pressure in childhood continued to show high blood pressure in young adulthood.

Given that high blood pressure is a risk factor for cardiovascular disease (CVD)—a major cause of death for people with type 1—these study results point to a need for early detection and treatment of high blood pressure in this group, the researchers say.

And key to reducing blood pressure and CVD risk is controlling blood glucose and weight, says lead author Ina Knerr, MD, PhD, of the Children’s and Adolescents’ Hospital at the University of Erlangen-Nuremberg in Germany. And, she adds, “all patients should be tested for hypercholesterolemia and ... smoking must be prevented.”