Ex-Pres. Arroyo brought to ICU after surgery

Former President and incumbent Pampanga Rep. Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo has been brought to the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) of the St. Luke's Medical City in Taguig City after undergoing a cervical spine surgery early on Friday. In a report aired over GMA News TV's Balitanghali, reporter John Consulta said that Mrs. Arroyo was brought to the ICU after undergoing surgery which began at 7:00 a.m. on Friday. Consulta said all members of the Arroyo family were present at the hospital while a team of more than 10 doctors performed the surgery on the former President. Consulta reported that the "crucial" thing was whether the former President would wake up after the surgery, which would indicate that she is in stable condition. He said the former President was sedated and was put on a breathing apparatus before undergoing a "Anterior Cervical Decompression and Fusion" surgery where pinched nerve endings are removed while titanium plates are placed on the neck to correct alignment. Doctors said Arroyo has "multi-level cervical spondylosis radiculopathy with kyphosis."
On late Monday afternoon, Mrs. Arroyo was rushed to the hospital after making the rounds of barangays in Pampanga. The incident happened just after President Benigno Simeon Aquino delivered his State of the Nation Address (SONA) on July 25. A day after being brought to the hospital, Arroyo's doctors said she needs to undergo "risky surgery" for a pinched nerve in her spine to prevent a possible paralysis. - VVP, GMA News