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Cardinal William Keeler recovering after brain surgery
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Cardinal William Keeler, archbishop of Baltimore.
BALTIMORE (Map, News) - Cardinal William Keeler, head of the Archdiocese of Baltimore, was groggy but in good spirits Monday afternoon after undergoing brain surgery earlier in the day, Auxiliary Bishop W. Francis Malooly said.
Keeler, 76, was admitted to Johns Hopkins Hospital Monday morning, where pediatric neurosurgeon Ben Carson inserted a tube into the Keeler’s skull to relieve the fluid pressure that had reduced his mobility in recent months.
Malooly, speaking at a Monday afternoon news conference at the Cathedral of St. Mary Our Queen, said the 90-minute procedure took place without incident.
“The doctor’s very happy with what happened,” he said, adding that the cardinal was awake and joking shortly after the surgery.
Keeler is expected to spend the next three days recuperating at the hospital. Malooly said the cardinal hoped to be discharged in time to attend Saturday’s ordination of four priests, but that the final decision would rest with his doctors.
“Knowing his strong will, anything he can do to get there, he will make it work,” Malooly said.
In October, while on vacation in Italy, Keeler fractured several ribs and an ankle in an auto accident. Malooly said the cardinal had experienced difficulty moving on many days since the incident.
Keeler was eventually diagnosed with hydrocephalus, an accumulation of fluid in the brain sometimes set off by trauma. The pressure of the fluid can impair the normal functions of the brain, causing afflictions such as learning disabilities, vision problems, and, in Keeler’s case, limited mobility.
The accident also prompted speculation that Keeler, who was compelled by canon law to submit his resignation when he turned 75, might soon be replaced by Pope Benedict XVI. Keeler has served as the archbishop of Baltimore since 1989 and was appointed cardinal in 1994.
But Malooly said he did not believe the procedure would have “any impact at all” on whether or when the Vatican might name Keeler’s successor.
Many Catholics who had gathered at the Basilica of the Assumption’s midday service on Monday offered prayers for the health of the cardinal, whose surgery began at about 12:30 p.m.
jdavisson@baltimoreexaminer.com
