Nelson Mandela Recovering After Gallstones Are Removed
Former South African President Nelson Mandela is recovering after doctors removed gallstones early today.
“He’s undergone a successful procedure,” Mac Maharaj, spokesman for President Jacob Zuma, said by phone.
Mandela, 94, was hospitalized for a series of tests on Dec. 8, which revealed that there was the reccurrence of a lung infection and that he had developed gallstones, the presidency said in a statement. Doctors performed an endoscopy to remove them, it said.
This is the second time Mandela has been hospitalized this year after undergoing exploratory abdominal surgery in February. Last year, Mandela received treatment for an acute respiratory infection.
After spending 27 years in prison under South Africa’s white-minority government, Mandela was elected the nation’s first black president in 1994. He stepped down in 1999.
To contact the reporter on this story: Paul Burkhardt in Johannesburg at pburkhardt@bloomberg.net
To contact the editor responsible for this story: John Viljoen at jviljoen@bloomberg.net
Former South African President Nelson Mandela
Former South African President Nelson Mandela, seen here in 2007, was admitted to a undisclosed hospital in the capital, Pretoria, on Dec. 8 for a recurring infection. Photographer : Chris Ratcliffe/Bloomberg
Former South African President Nelson Mandela, seen here in 2007, was admitted to a undisclosed hospital in the capital, Pretoria, on Dec. 8 for a recurring infection. Photographer : Chris Ratcliffe/Bloomberg
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