www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/wp-dyn/A42534-2004Mar9?language=printer
At a news conference following the surgery, Ashcroft's surgeon, Bruce Abell, said, "Everything went as planned. The attorney general's condition was listed as guarded, but Abell said that was normal for a patient after this type of surgery. He said Ashcroft, 61, was expected to stay at George Washington University Hospital for four to five days to recuperate. The 90-minute surgery was conducted using laparoscopy, in which a tube with a miniature camera and surgical tools is inserted into the body to remove the gallbladder, Abell said. Abell said in a statement released this morning that the surgery was scheduled for today because Ashcroft is now strong enough to withstand the operation. He had entered the hospital last Thursday after complaining of severe abdominal pain. He also said doctors had been concerned about several gallstones remaining in Ashcroft's gallbladder. "As a preventative measure we are going to remove his gallbladder, because when a gallbladder isn't removed, up to 50 percent of patients have a recurrence of pancreatitis within six weeks." Ashcroft was diagnosed last week with acute pancreatitis, which in his case was caused by one or more gallstones in the bile tube that is shared by the pancreas and the gallbladder, officials have said. After the gallstone blockage is removed or passes on its own, the inflammation of the pancreas usually returns to normal, the Justice statement said. But because "acute pancreatitis can be a severe, life-threatening illness with many complications," the doctors at George Washington decided to remove the gallbladder altogether. Medical experts say up to 20 million Americans have had their gallbladders removed, which does not pose significant health risks. His deputy, James Comey, is empowered to act in his stead. Ashcroft has been staying in the hospital's intensive care unit, where he has been visited regularly by his wife, Janet, and close friends and aides, Justice officials have said.
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