Václav Havel continues recovery

The former Czech president Václav Havel who is in hospital with a lung inflammation is reported to have made some progress on the road to recovery. However he remains in intensive care and doctors have been warning that the seventy-two year-old’s health is still fragile.

Martina Pelichovská, photo: CTK

On January 12 former president Václav Havel underwent emergency surgery at Prague’s Motol hospital after expressing difficulties breathing and swallowing as a result of a swelling that had developed in his throat. For Mr Havel, this was the first serious hospital visit in just under a year, when he was treated from acute bronchitis coupled with an irregular heartbeat. Early reports were filled with speculation about just how serious the condition of the former president was. Ultimately, it turned out that the surgery was successful, but that after it Mr Havel made a turn for the worse after developing complications leading to an inflammation of his partially removed right lung. His condition has gradually been improving, but doctors say he’s not out of the woods yet.

Dr Martina Pelichovská is one of the doctors treating Mr Havel in the Motol hospital. This is how she described the situation on Thursday morning:

“At the beginning, the rehabilitation proved very tiring for Mr Havel, and he had to rest relatively often. But as the effects of the illness recedes, he is now tolerating rehabilitation far better. Our goal now is to get him moving and walking again to the point where he can return to normal life. All this means that we are gradually increasing his rehabilitation activities.”

Václav Havel

For more than a week, Mr Havel has been breathing oxygen through a special mask. However, on Thursday, doctor’s announced that they were now slowly weaning him off the oxygen as a result of his improved condition. The next step remains to see if Mr Havel can breathe independently and then efforts will begin to see if the former president is able to resume his mobility. Mr Havel is also taking large amounts of medication, particularly antibiotics, and visits are strictly limited for fear of Mr Havel catching a cold. But reports suggest that he remains alert and is indulging in reading and also personally watched the inauguration of President Barack Obama on Tuesday evening local time.

Václav Havel’s history of lung-related heath problems can be traced back to the bout of pneumonia he caught whilst imprisoned by the communist authorities for four years between 1979 and 1984. The illness went untreated for some time, and is said to have permanently weakened Mr Havel, who has suffered numerous bouts of bronchitis. This is coupled with the former president’s lifetime chain-smoking, something he only gave up after having a malignant tumour removed from his lung in 1996. That operation left him with only one fully functional lung. In 1998, Mr Havel also received treatment for a perforated colon.

At present, doctors remain wary of making any forecasts for when Mr Havel might be released from hospital. Dr Martina Pelichovská again:

“When that time comes I cannot say, because the kind of illness he had requires a certain recuperative procedure. And this can change at any time from favourable where we are now to a minor shift towards the unfavourable. So it is absolutely impossible at this time to say that things will be OK from now on or that he will be released on a given day.”