January 23, 2011 / 1443 reads
Bret Michaels will undergo heart surgery on January 24 to repair a hole in his heart — a condition heÂ's had since birth, but only recently discovered.
According to The Arizona Republic, doctors at Barrow and St. JosephÂ's Hospital and Medical Center directed Michaels to continue follow-up treatment for his April 2010 hemorrhage before moving ahead with surgery to repair his heart.
"IÂ've done a lot of neurological tests, and they say IÂ'm about 95 percent there," said Michaels. "I still have a little Â'funkÂ' with my left hand that I havenÂ't quite figured out, but I think with a little more therapy, by one full year (after the hemorrhage), IÂ'll be as good as IÂ'm going to get."
He added, "Barring any complications, I should be out within three to four days. Then, I will be down (resting) for three weeks. I donÂ't know if I can sit around for that long, but IÂ'll try my best."
The hole in his heart is most likely Atrial Septal Defect (ASD). In this procedure, a thin, flexible tube called a catheter is inserted into a blood vessel in the leg that leads to the heart. A cardiologist guides the tube into the heart to make measurements of blood flow, pressure, and oxygen levels in the heart chambers. A special implant is positioned into the hole in the septum and will flatten against the septum on both sides to close and permanently seal the ASD
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