Cheney OK after surgery to repair aneurysms

WASHINGTON -- Vice President Dick Cheney had successful surgery yesterday to repair aneurysms on the back of both knees. He was alert and comfortable after the six-hour operation, his spokesman said.

Cheney, who has a history of heart problems, was under local anesthesia during the surgery at George Washington University Hospital.

''He will remain in the hospital for up to 48 hours to monitor his recovery. He is expected to resume a regular schedule when he is released," said Steve Schmidt, counselor to the vice president.

After the operation, Cheney was ''awake, alert, comfortable," Schmidt said. The vice president was expected to be briefed on Hurricane Rita yesterday.

An aneurysm is a ballooning weak spot in an artery that, as blood pulses through, can burst if left untreated. The aneurysms, known as popliteal aneurysms, are not considered life-threatening. The condition was discovered during Cheney's annual physical in July.

Cheney had been scheduled to have only the right knee operated on yesterday, but doctors decided to do both at once, Schmidt said. There were no complications.

Cheney had flexible stent grafts put in his knee arteries.

''Placement of the device in the right knee artery went exceedingly smoothly, and an intraoperative decision was made to repair the aneurysm behind the left knee using a similar technique," Schmidt said.

During the procedure, the stent graft is threaded through a catheter inserted in the femoral artery at the groin down to the aneurysm site. Fully opened, it is like a little tube inside the artery, keeping the rushing blood from touching the weakened artery walls.

This is a newer technique for patching aneurysms, and an alternative to rerouting blood flow around the weak spot with a vein bypass.

Cheney, 64, has had four heart attacks, quadruple bypass surgery, two artery-clearing angioplasties, and an operation to implant a special pacemaker in his chest. The pacemaker starts automatically if needed to regulate his heartbeat.

A vascular exam, part of a two-part annual physical Cheney completed in July, identified ''small, dilated segments of the arteries behind both knees."

Cheney's overall cardio health was judged as good after the first part of the exam, which included a general physical exam, an electrocardiogram, and a stress test. The checkup determined that the pacemaker was working well and had never been activated.