Doctors Change Prognosis, Say Bonner Needs Bypass Surgery
Doctors for Yelena Bonner, reversing an earlier prognosis, said today that the wife of Soviet dissident Andrei D. Sakharov will need a heart bypass operation after all because fatty deposits are partially blocking her arteries.
Dr. Adolph M. Hutter, a cardiologist at Massachusetts General Hospital, decided that surgery was necessary after examining Bonner, 62, on Monday.
He determined that medication prescribed for Bonner “was not having the desired effect and that bypass surgery would be necessary,” hospital spokesman Martin Bander said.
A surgeon has not yet been selected to perform the surgery, Bander said.
Last month, doctors said surgery would not be necessary for Bonner at this time. Instead, they said she needed to change medications, switch to a low-fat diet and quit smoking.
Bonner’s son-in-law, Efrem Yankelevich, who lives in the Boston suburb of Newton, said he expected the heart surgery to occur before the end of January. He also said she may have surgery in Boston for glaucoma that threatens her vision.
Bonner’s 90-day visa to seek medical treatment expires March 2.
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