Ex-President Arroyo to start wearing neck brace

Former president Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo will have to temporarily wear a neck brace after she was rushed to the hospital Thursday due to a pinched nerve, according to an update on News TV Live. Doctors at St. Luke’s Medical Center, where Arroyo was confined, said she may have to undergo two more days of treatment at the hospital.
For the latest Philippine news stories and videos, visit GMANews.TV Earlier, her spokesperson Elena Bautista-Horn told GMA News that Arroyo’s condition was initially diagnosed as cervical radiculopathy, more commonly known as a pinched nerve. Horn added that Arroyo, now sitting as Pampanga’s second-district representative, is now in stable condition. Recurring problem Arroyo had experienced pinched nerve problems in the past, according to a medical bulletin of St. Luke’s, GMA News’ “24 Oras" newscast reported Thursday. The pinched nerve, however, turned out to be more painful this time around, prompting Arroyo to request to be hospitalized.
For the latest Philippine news stories and videos, visit GMANews.TV Arroyo’s family and friends paid her a visit at the hospital during the day. “Let’s keep hoping that she gets well as soon as possible," her son, Dato, said in an interview with reporters. Horn meanwhile thanked the people who expressed their concern for the former president. “Ibalato natin ang kaunting pahinga nang dalawang araw para sa kanya," the spokesperson added. On the same day that she was hospitalized, a Protestant group filed a P5.4-million damage suit against Arroyo for the alleged extrajudicial killings of five church members and the alleged abduction of another one from 2003 to 2006. — Paterno Esmaquel II/VS, GMA News