PRETORIA: South African anti-apartheid hero Nelson Mandela yesterday underwent a successful procedure to remove gall stones, a week after he was admitted to hospital for a lung infection, the office of the president said.
“The medical team decided to attend to a lung infection before determining when to attend to the gall stones”, a statement from the presidency said.
The 94-year-old is being treated at a private hospital in the capital Pretoria. Initial tests revealed he was suffering from a recurring lung infection.
The former president underwent a procedure via endoscopy to have the gall stones removed, the statement said. “The procedure was successful and Madiba is recovering,” it added, using the clan name by which Mandela is affectionately known. Mandela was previously hospitalised for an acute respiratory infection in January 2011, when he was kept for two nights before being released for home-based care and intense medical monitoring.
Mandela has a long history of lung problems, dating back decades to when he contracted tuberculosis while in prison. AFP
