Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell is 81 years old. His recent fall, resulting in a concussion and a hospital stay, was newsworthy, but hardly news. Each year, millions of Americans 65 and older fall. In fact, one in four older people fall each year, though less than half inform their doctor. Falling once doubles the chance of falling again.

For older people, falling can be calamitous. One in five falls results in a serious injury, such as broken bones or head trauma. Each year, 3 million seniors are treated in emergency departments for falls, with roughly one-third hospitalized, usually due to a hip fracture or head injury.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates there are seven fall deaths every hour in the United States, accounting for approximately 32,000 deaths annually. The fall death rate increased 30% from 2007 to 2016 among older adults.

The risk factors for falling: lower body weakness, vitamin D deficiency, walking and balance difficulties, use of medications that make the person unsteady, vision problems, foot pain or poor footwear, and environmental hazards, such as broken or uneven steps or rugs/clutter that can be tripped over.

Body of Knowledge

Go ahead and play with your weenus. You won't feel a thing. Well, maybe something, but not much. Your weenus — or more precisely, olecranal skin — is the extra flesh on your elbow. And because it has fewer sensory neurons than elsewhere, it's less sensitive to touch. You can knead it as long and as hard as you want. It's like a stress ball always at hand — or at least up the forearm from a hand.

Get Me That, Stat!

An estimated 98% of Americans have detectable levels of per-and polyfluoroalkyl substances, or PFAS (also known as "forever chemicals"), in the bloodstream. PFAS are manmade chemicals broadly used in nonstick pans, firefighting foams, cosmetics, paper straws and waterproof fabrics. They have been linked to increased risk of cancer, birth defects and other health problems. By the end of the year, the Environmental Protection Agency has promised to propose new national drinking water standards for PFAS levels.

Mark Your Calendar

April is awareness month for autism, oral and testicular cancers, Parkinson's disease, sarcoidosis, irritable bowel syndrome, sexually transmitted infections, sexual assault, child abuse and, well, given everything else, stress.

Stories for the Waiting Room

Various studies suggest that higher levels of estrogen make a person less reactive to caffeine. In other words, women are less likely to be responsive to a coffee buzz than men.

Doc Talk

Fundus photography: No, it's not snapshots from your vacation, but rather an imaging test that provides multidimensional pictures of the back of the eyeball, specifically the retina, optic nerve head, macula and retinal blood vessels.

Phobia of the Week

Merinthophobia: fear of being bound or tied up

Best Medicine

You can hear the blood in your veins if you listen varicosely.

Observation

"Today is the oldest you have ever been, and the youngest you'll ever be again." — Eleanor Roosevelt, (1884-1962) First Lady of the United States (1933-1945)

Medical History

This week in 1933, the first human-to-human kidney transplant occurred in a six-hour operation by Ukrainian surgeon Yurii Voronoy. A female patient admitted with acute mercury intoxication (after a suicide attempt by taking poison) had not responded to conventional treatment. A male patient had just died from a head injury. The man's cadaver kidney was implanted in the thigh of the woman and connected to blood vessels at the site. It excreted urine until the second day post-operation. Blood types, however, were a mismatch. The organ was rejected, and the woman died.

The first successful kidney transplant would occur in 1954 using as a donor the recipient's identical twin.

Sum Body

Seven things to know about the aging U.S. population:

No. 1: The overall adult population is increasingly older and predominantly female. Since 2010, roughly 10,000 baby boomers have turned 65 each day; by 2023, all of them will be at least 65 years old.

No. 2: Though impacted by the COVID pandemic, life expectancy is on the rise, with implications for greater prevalence of chronic diseases like diabetes, heart disease and cancer.

No. 3: Compared to previous generations, older adults are carrying more debt into retirement and have few financial resources.

No. 4: The demand for paid and unpaid caregivers, already stretched, will outpace current supply expectations.

No. 5: Most older adults want to age in place, such as remaining in their own homes as they grow older.

No. 6: Medicare Advantage, which is managed by private insurance companies, is projected to surpass traditional Medicare (managed by the federal government) by 2030.

No. 7: COVID-19 disproportionately impacted older adults (1 in 100 older Americans has died from the virus compared to 1 in 1,400 people younger than 65) and exacerbated existing health care issues related to seniors.

Source: Advisory Board

Curtain Calls

Mark Fidrych was a Major League Baseball pitcher (1976-1980 for the Detroit Tigers), famously quirky and nicknamed "The Bird." On April 13, 2009, a family friend found Fidrych dead beneath his 10-wheel dump truck at home. Authorities concluded that Fidrych accidentally suffocated to death after his clothes became entangled with a spinning power shaft on the truck. He was 54.

To find out more about Scott LaFee and read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate website at www.creators.com.

Photo credit: ArtisticOperations at Pixabay