Vice-President Dick Cheney went to the hospital this afternoon after his doctors detected an abnormal rhythm to his heartbeat. He was diagnosed with atrial fibrillation, meaning that the upper chambers of his heart, the atria, weren’t beating properly, and doctors prepared to give his heart an electric shock to restore its proper rhythm.
Atrial fibrillation isn’t an immediately life-threatening condition, unlike ventricular fibrillation, when the heart’s lower chambers stop beating, blood stops pumping, and the body begins to shut down. Patients with atrial fibrillation may feel palpitations or shortness of breath, but often it causes no symptoms at all. When it happens, blood isn’t pumped completely out of the atria. That increases the likelihood that the blood will form a clot, which can then travel into the brain and cause a stroke. That’s the most important reason for treating the condition [The Wall Street Journal health blog].
Cheney also experienced an abnormal rhythm in the upper chambers of his heart November 26. His normal heart rhythm was restored through a procedure called cardioversion [CNN]. Doctors are expected to perform the same short out-patient procedure this time, in which Cheney will be sedated and an electric shock will be administered to his heart to jump-start his atria and get them beating normally again.
The 67-year-old vice-president has a long history of heart disease. Cheney has had four heart attacks, starting when he was 37 years old, and many related doctor and hospital visits over the years since. He has had quadruple bypass surgery and two artery-clearing angioplasties. In 2001, he had a special pacemaker implanted in his chest. The pacemaker’s battery was replaced last year, and then the entire device was replaced [AP].
Related Content:
DISCOVER: Young at Heart, investigating whether doctors can revitalize heart muscle
DISCOVER: Can Stem Cells Save Dying Hearts?
Image: White House/David Bohrer




October 15th, 2008 at 9:12 pm
So are you saying they rebooted him????/
October 17th, 2008 at 3:46 am
He’s had more heart problems then he’s had draft deferments.
October 19th, 2008 at 7:39 pm
Cheney attended Yale University, but he flunked out. Cheney was twice prosecuted for and convicted of drunk driving. Cheney lied to former U.S. House Majority Leader Dick Armey about the grounds for going to war in Iraq. Cheney is a pathological liar. Cheney is incompetent. Cheney would like to think that he is above the law. However, Cheney must pay for crimes against the United States and the world.
George W. Bush and Richard B. Cheney belong in an insane asylum. Bush is comparable to Adolf Hitler. Bush is mentally ill. Bush suffers from narcissism and megalomania. Bush lied, and thousands of people died. Bush is psychotic. Bush is dangerous. The American people should pursue the involuntary psychiatric hospitalization of Bush and Cheney to safeguard against further atrocities. God will judge and punish Bush and Cheney.
Maybe God is judging and punishing Cheney in afflicting Cheney with further heart problems in the here and now (15 October 2008) notwithstanding God’s fiery judgment against Cheney in the afterlife.
Cheney should be locked up.
Submitted by Andrew Yu-Jen Wang
B.S., Summa Cum Laude, 1996
Messiah College, Grantham, PA
Lower Merion High School, Ardmore, PA, 1993
February 16th, 2009 at 9:20 am
Lil Andy said, “Maybe God is judging and punishing Cheney in afflicting Cheney with further heart problems in the here and now (15 October 2008) notwithstanding God’s fiery judgment against Cheney in the afterlife.”
Now come on Andrew, you know Marxists do not believe in God. I do not understand how you think an imaginary being will punish this great man. I, on the other hand, do believe in God and think it highly more probable that you will burn in hell because of the immoral things the left practices and protects. I am sure God is pissed about all the babies you wacky liberals kill.