Demographic Trends NEARLY half the patients admitted to general wards of hospitals today are over the age of 60 (Lancet, I963); the average age of patients admitted to Geriatric Units varies between 75 and 80, and in the Sunderland Geriatric Unit over onethird of all the admissions are over 80 years. The number of operations performed on patients of 60 and over (excluding orthopaedic and urolog...