Doctors Say Reagan Keeps Getting Better

Doctors continued to express optimism Monday about former President Ronald Reagan’s smooth rebound from surgery for his broken hip.

“He sat up in a chair on Sunday afternoon, has already done so this morning and will be encouraged to do so again this afternoon,” said Joanne Drake in her daily report from St. John’s Health Center in Santa Monica. “His appetite has increased and he has even enjoyed some ice cream, his favorite dessert.”

Reagan, who was diagnosed as having Alzheimer’s disease in 1994, broke his right hip Friday after falling in his Bel-Air home.

He underwent a 65-minute surgery Saturday morning at St. John’s. Doctors used a pin, plate and screw to knit his injured hip together.

Reagan, who turns 90 on Feb. 6, is expected to remain hospitalized for another week. Recovery could take up to a month.

“He’s progressing,” said Dr. Kevin Ehrhart, Reagan’s orthopedic surgeon. “He’s eating and he’s doing well.”