Health security

Biden's debate performance renews questions of health

Former Vice President Joe Biden had a big night at Thursday’s Democratic presidential candidate debate in Houston. A lot was at stake, and I was not alone in focusing on the cogency of his answers.

Regarding Biden’s health care plans, former U.S. Housing and Urban Development Secretary and rival candidate Julián Castro accused him of confusing the details, "Are you forgetting what you said two minutes ago?"

It was, of course, a pointed suggestion that Biden, at age 76, may not be as sharp as he once was. (His closest rivals in terms of polling, Sens. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts and Bernie Sanders of Vermont, are 70 and 78, respectively).

Indeed, Biden appeared to struggle for cogency at times during the three-hours-long debate. At one point, he said parents of young children should "play the radio. Make sure the television — excuse me, make sure you have the record player on at night." Of course, records and record players haven't been in regular use for decades now.

I have never examined the former vice president, and so I cannot comment directly on his health. In fact, I was not concerned when I saw blood appear in his left eye during the CNN climate-change town hall last week.

I recognized that, since it didn’t appear to bother him, it was likely due to a benign, self-limited leak from a superficial vessel, known as sub-conjunctival hemorrhage. Though this problem often can be brought on by stress, high blood pressure or bleeding issues in an older person, and certainly looks striking on television, it is usually nothing to worry about, particularly if it doesn’t persist or recur.