Lee Kuan Yew recovering
Lee Kuan Yew recovering
SINGAPORE (AFP): Former prime minister Lee Kuan Yew underwent successful treatment for a heart problem here yesterday and was recovering in intensive care, a government statement said.
The 72-year-old elder statesman had checked into the Singapore General Hospital on Friday after complaining of chest pains.
A procedure known as balloon angioplasty was carried out yesterday and "successfully opened up" two areas of "significant narrowing" in one coronary artery with no complications, said the statement from Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong's office.
The procedure involves using a tube with a balloon tip to clear narrowed arteries, which could lead to a heart attack if unchecked.
The functions of Lee's heart were "completely normal with no evidence of muscle damage," the statement said.
"Senior Minister was transferred to the Cardio-Thoracic Intensive Care Unit where he will be under observation and close monitoring for the next 24 hours," the government statement said, using Lee's cabinet title.
Lee stepped down as premier in 1990 in favor of Goh, his handpicked successor, after governing the city-state with an iron hand for three decades, turning it from a sleepy British colonial port into an Asian economic power.
An earlier statement said Lee, whose brief official profile lists jogging and swimming as his forms of recreation, "has been having chest pains during exercise the past few days."
News of Lee's hospitalization came amid expectations of a general election this year, which his People's Action Party (PAP), in power for nearly 37 years now, is expected to win handily.
Lee has not declared whether he will stand for reelection as an MP.
Lee was in the news earlier this week after revealing he had mild dyslexia, a learning disorder that causes reading difficulties. He said he was diagnosed as having the problem 10 years ago.
Singapore's top leadership has been hit by ailments in recent years.
President Ong Teng Cheong, 59, underwent five weeks of radiotherapy late last year for lymphoma, a form of cancer. He has resumed public duties after the apparently successful treatment.
Lee's 43-year-old son, Deputy Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, was diagnosed as suffering from lymphoma in 1992 at the same time as Ong, at the time also a deputy prime minister, delivering a double shock to Singapore.
The younger Lee temporarily relinquished his official posts but after treatment rejoined the cabinet. He now oversees the trade and industry ministry and is seen as a potential successor to Goh.