Rep. Murtha in intensive care

Source: MSNBC

From NBC's Kelly O'Donnell
Democratic aides tell NBC News that 19-term Pennsylvania Rep. John Murtha (D) is hospitalized after complications arose after scheduled surgery to remove his gallbladder. Murtha is currently in intensive care at the Virginia Hospital Center in Arlington, VA.

The surgery followed an issue that arose in December, according to aides.

Murtha is 77. He is a powerful member of the House Appropriations Committee, and he's under scrutiny and an ethics cloud for his ties to the now-defunct lobbying firm PMA.

Read more: http://firstread.msnbc.msn.com/archive/2010/02/02/2191897.aspx

:hug:

:/

Here's hoping they are able to un-complicate the complications.

Best wishes to Rep. Murtha and his loved ones.

We need you. Semper Fi

I wonder what the complications were.

That's enough of a complication right there.

Especially since they do not usually open you up anymore. I remember the old gallbladder surgeries. Its amazing the progress they've made.

Old people are so used to pain that they don't know what to worry about.

Source: http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/dcnow/2010/02/john-murtha-gallbladder-hospitalized.html

Rep. John Murtha (D-Pa.) has been hospitalized in intensive care stemming from complications related to gallbladder surgery.


Spokesman Matt Mazonkey says the 77-year-old congressman underwent scheduled surgery last week and is currently at Virginia Hospital Center in Arlington.


Murtha was also hospitalized in December with gallbladder problems.


The 19-term Democrat was the first Vietnam veteran to serve in Congress. He leads the powerful House Appropriations subcommittee on defense spending.

-- Associated Press


Read more: http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/dcnow/2010/02/john-murtha-gallbladder-hospitalized.html

:(

We need you!
:patriot:

Source: AmericaBlog

Ambinder just Tweeted it:

This from earlier:

<http://voices.washingtonpost.com/thefix/house/john-murtha-hospitalized-polit.html?wprss=thefix>

Read more: http://www.americablog.com/2010/02/murtha-reportedly-in-grave-condition.html

Sigh.

I can only hope that Ann Coulter is feeling a twinge of guilt tonight. I doubt it, though.

but it KILLED my husband...like complications from any surgery could!! So don't be so dismissive of our concern for an elder statesman!

I work in microbiology. Gall bladders can get infected. Sometimes they cannot take them out the "new" way, but must make a big abdominal incision to take them out (the "old" way) because of the infection. If he ended up with a post-op surgical infection at the site, or pneumonia post-operatively (which can happen in an ICU situation due to having been put on a vent), and he's elderly, he is probably a very sick man, quite possibly septic (bacteria in his blood, which used to be called "blood poisoning"). Please realize this is all speculation on my part, but I routinely work on abdominal incision cultures, and they can tend to get infected. An elderly person cannot fight this as well as someone younger. Also, antibiotic resistance factors into this type of problem. The bugs are harder to get rid of nowadays, especially in an ICU situation.

I wish him well.

Hope he pulls through...

http://twitter.com/marcambinder/status/8570488651

And another tweet: "Murtha's office not commenting; hope to have an update in the early a.m."

http://twitter.com/MarcAmbinder

I refuse to believe the worst over this one tweet. I am praying for his recovery and return to government. PA needs him and we need to keep the seat Democratic.

Hang on John!

did't know nothing this AM

I know Murtha's taken some ethical hits, but he had the stones to stand up to the Chimp at the height of the madness. He deserves big props for that.