Bret Michaels undergoes heart surgery in Phoenix

by Jennifer Thomas
PHOENIX -- Singer Bret Michaels successfully underwent heart surgery at St. Joseph's Hospital and Medical Center in Phoenix Monday.

Michaels, who lives in Scottsdale, had a procedure done to close a hole in his heart.

He's apparently had the problem since birth, but it was only discovered in April when doctors treated him for a brain hemorrhage.

The hospital said Michaels had a cardiac catheterization during which doctors inserted a catheter into a vein in the groin and guide wires and a closure device into the heart with cameras assisting doctors as they close the hole.

The closure device will remain in Michaels' heart permanently to stop abnormal blood flow between the two chambers of the heart, which is thought to have caused the warning stoke he suffered.

"There's one part of me that absolutely says everything's going to be great and of course there's that other part, somewhere deep inside my brain, that says, you know, you just keep your fingers crossed that everything goes well," Michaels said over the weekend. "But the truth of the matter is I know I'm going to feel a lot better when this operation is done."

Without treatment, doctors say Michaels could be at risk for developing blood clots and an additional stroke.

Michaels, a lifelong type 1 diabetic, is currently recuperating in the Intesive Care Unit at St. Joseph's Hospital where he remains for observation.

The Poison frontman won "Celebrity Apprentice 3" and starred in the VH1 reality show "Bret Michaels: Life As I Know It."

Source :http://www.azfamily.com/news/local/Bret-Michaels-to-undergo-heart-surgery-in-Phoenix-114493969.html