Illinois’ junior senator, Senator Mark Kirk,had a part of his skull reattached on Tuesday morning at Northwestern Memorial Hospital in Chicago. Part of the senator’s skull was removed after he had a stroke accompanied by swelling in the brain just over two weeks ago. The removal was necessary to give the brain ample room to swell at the time.
The swelling has reportedly reversed which made it possible for the reattachment surgery to take place.
Kirk’s neurosurgeon, Dr. Richard Fessler, said in a statement:
This is an important milestone in his recovery and a step toward the next phase, rehabilitation.
It was reported yesterday that Kirk was doing well – upgraded to good condition by his doctor. His doctor said that Kirk was visiting with family over the weekend and also watched the Super Bowl. During that statement, Dr. Fessler said that Kirk has a lengthy recovery ahead of him. While it is believed that Kirk will have some physical impairment from the stroke which may include some left-side-of-the-body paralysis, his mental abilities will be fine.
Kirk, a Republican in Illinois, was elected to the U.S. Senate in a bitter campaign battle against Democrat Alexi Giannoulias in 2010. The seat had formerly been that of President Barack Obama. The replacement of Obama in the senate turned into the arrest and ultimately the 14-year prison sentence of former Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich.
Source: Chicago Tribune
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