Specter Undergoes Heart Bypass Surgery
PHILADELPHIA (AllPolitics, June 1) -- Sen. Arlen Specter (R-Pa.) underwent heart bypass surgery Monday afternoon, two days after checking into a Philadelphia hospital complaining of chest pains.
The 68-year-old senator came through the three-hour, double-bypass procedure well and is expected to fully recover, said John Ullyot, Specter's spokesman. The coronary artery bypass was performed by a team of two doctors.
Specter is expected to remain hospitalized for the next five to seven days.
The senator's cardiologist, Dr. Howard Weitz, recommended the procedure after a cardiac catheterization test revealed Specter's arterial blockage. Other tests showed that Specter's heart is in excellent condition.
The Pennsylvania Republican and 1996 presidential candidate is running for fourth term in the fall.
In the past five years, Specter has had two benign tumors removed from his brain.
He checked into Thomas Jefferson University Hospital Saturday. The senator underwent tests Sunday and "watched the Phillies game ... on TV and read the Sunday paper," a spokesman said.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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