Introduction: A relation between midlife risk factors (hypertension and diabetes) and dementia has been studied in past and an association has been documented, in spite of some studies pointing to the contrary.
Materials and methods: The study was based on post-hoc analysis of data obtained from a study conducted on an elderly population (60 years and above) from selected geographical areas (migrant, urban, rural and tribal) of the Himachal Pradesh state in North-West India.
Results: Analysis of variance revealed an effect of risk factors on cognitive scores; however, post hoc Tukey's honest significant difference (HSD) test revealed that only hypertensives' demonstrated higher chances of scoring lower on cognitive measures.
Discussion: The possibility that hypertension and diabetes affect dementia needs further evaluation, more so in Indian context.
Keywords: Dementia; diabetes; hypertension; north-west India; post-hoc.