Sharon Faces Procedure to Fix Hole in Heart That May Have Led to Stroke

Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon will soon undergo a medical procedure meant to mend a tiny hole in his heart that may have contributed to his minor stroke this month, his doctors announced Monday.

The doctors described the planned catheterization procedure as the most common method of treating such a heart condition, which they said was a birth defect of a type that occurs in up to 25% of the population.

No date was set for the procedure, but doctors said it would take place within the next three weeks.

The health of the prime minister, who will turn 78 in February, has been under intense scrutiny in Israel since he was hospitalized Dec. 18 following what doctors said was a small stroke that caused no lasting neurological damage. He was released after two days, and aides say he has resumed his normal work schedule.

Sharon is the head of a new centrist political party widely expected to place first in general elections that are scheduled for March 28. But the party, called Kadima, or Forward, is built largely around Sharon’s immense personal popularity among the Israeli electorate, and polls have suggested that it might falter if anyone else were at the helm.

If Sharon were to be incapacitated during the medical procedure or for any other reason, his duties would be assumed by Vice Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, who followed the Israeli leader into Kadima after Sharon abandoned his conservative Likud Party.

Commentators have expressed doubts that Olmert, an important behind-the-scenes confidant of Sharon but one whose political persona is somewhat colorless, could muster a following like that of the prime minister. Sharon, largely by dint of sheer personal authority derived in part from his long military career, overcame furious right-wing opposition to carry out Israel’s withdrawal from the Gaza Strip over the summer.

Explaining the nonsurgical procedure to be carried out on Sharon, Dr. Chaim Lotan, the chief of cardiology at Hadassah University Medical Center in Jerusalem, told journalists that doctors would use a camera-guided catheter to insert a small “umbrella-like” device for sealing the hole between the upper chambers of the prime minister’s heart.

Mild sedation is generally used to relax the patient’s muscles when the catheter is inserted through the esophagus, Lotan said, but a general anesthetic is not required. The procedure usually takes about 30 minutes.

In the meantime, Sharon is being treated with a bloodthinning medication to preclude the formation of blood clots, the doctors said.

The hole in Sharon’s heart, measuring less than an eighth of an inch, was detected during tests conducted after the stroke. Doctors said Monday that the small tear might have allowed a blood clot to pass through, which then triggered the stroke when it reached his cranium.

The prime minister’s aides are portraying him as energetic and upbeat in the wake of his health scare. At a Cabinet meeting on Sunday, the first he had presided over since being released from the hospital, Sharon joked with ministers that they, unlike him, could go ahead and indulge -- in moderation -- in traditional calorie-packed foods like jelly doughnuts and potato pancakes for the Hanukkah holiday, which began at sundown Sunday.

The overweight Sharon was put on a strict diet following the stroke, and doctors said he has since lost about five pounds. They said the prime minister, who stands about 5 feet, 7 inches tall, now weighs 255 pounds, though Israeli media reports have said he appears considerably heavier.

Despite his girth, Sharon’s blood pressure and cholesterol levels are normal, the medical team said.

Doctors also disclosed additional details about Sharon’s condition in the immediate aftermath of the stroke. Dr. Tamir Ben-Hur, the head of neurology at Hadassah, said the prime minister had difficulty speaking and that his decision-making ability was temporarily impaired but he had complete recall of the evening’s events.

Although the platform of Sharon’s party envisions the establishment of a Palestinian state, many Palestinians fear that the prime minister will try to in effect draw the borders prior to any real negotiations by seeking to maintain a grip on the largest Jewish settlement blocks in the West Bank.

Israel has agreed to a U.S.-backed peace plan that calls for a freeze on Jewish settlement activity in the West Bank, but construction continues. Israel’s Housing Ministry on Monday issued construction tenders for 228 new settlement homes in the settlements of Beitar Ilit and Efrat, drawing angry criticism from peace groups.

Israel said the building plans dated back years, but Palestinians objected heatedly. Chief Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat said such construction “undermines the peace process.”

Three and a half months after completing its withdrawal from Gaza, Israel is frustrated by the continuing rocket attacks Palestinian militants launch into its territory from the seaside strip. On Monday, the army said it fired two artillery barrages into Gaza in response to rocket fire. No casualties were reported.

Israel has threatened to set up a buffer zone in the north of Gaza to try to quell the attacks, but Palestinian militant groups have said they are developing longer-range rockets and will simply operate deeper inside Gaza.