Schwarzenegger has surgery to remove plate from broken thigh bone

LOS ANGELES — Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger underwent surgery Saturday to remove a metal plate and cables from his leg, a spokesman said.

The hardware was used to help Schwarzenegger's upper thigh bone heal after he broke it while skiing in Sun Valley, Idaho, last Dec. 23.

The orthopedic surgeon who performed the 20-minute surgery at a Los Angeles hospital said in a statement issued by the governor's office that there were no complications.

Dr. Kevin Ehrhart said removing the hardware is standard practice after the leg has fully healed. Ehrhart said the second-term Republican governor will use a crutch for several days.

Schwarzenegger spokesman Aaron McLear said the governor turned over power to Lt. Gov. John Garamendi for 90 minutes during what he described as "minor surgery." Schwarzenegger was under general anesthesia for one hour during the procedure, McLear said.

McLear would not disclose the name of the hospital, citing "privacy reasons." Schwarzenegger left the hospital Saturday afternoon to return to his Santa Monica home, McLear said.

Ehrhart, in his statement, said the governor "is in excellent health and there were no complications in this morning's successful follow-up medical procedure. The governor has fully recovered from his initial surgery last December and removing the hardware is a standard practice."

Ehrhart also performed the surgery last Dec. 26 when the plate and cable were inserted to repair Schwarzenegger's right femur, which he broke three days earlier when he fell while skiing with his family. That surgery lasted 90 minutes, Ehrhart said at the time, and used cables and screws to wire the two main fragments of the broken femur bone back together.

Schwarzenegger walked with crutches and a cane for weeks afterward, but he was able to attend his inauguration the following week.

Last year, the governor blamed an artificial hip installed about six years ago for contributing to what he described as an odd, slow-speed accident. His ski failed to release from its binding, twisting his leg until it snapped, Schwarzenegger said.

The former actor, body builder and seven-time Mr. Olympia also had a heart valve replaced in 1997. He had rotator cuff surgery in 2003. He went to a hospital complaining of a rapid heartbeat in 2005.

He also has had two recent injuries in motorcycle crashes. He had several broken ribs during a crash in 2001. A minor accident in January 2006 required 15 stitches in his lip.

Schwarzenegger met Friday morning with state, federal and local officials overseeing the cleanup of an oil spill in San Francisco Bay. He then flew to Los Angeles to deliver an afternoon speech to the Latino Coalition for a Healthy California Conference, where he argued that his health care reform plan will aid the state's economy.

He had no other public duties before entering the hospital Saturday morning for the previously scheduled surgery, McLear said. He was under anesthesia from 9:30 a.m. to 10:30 a.m.

"We don't know his schedule for next week, so I don't know when he's due back in Sacramento," McLear said. "But this will not affect his ability to govern in any way.... He's acting as governor as we speak and fully able to do whatever he needs to do to move California forward — oil spill, health care, anything else."

Schwarzenegger and legislative leaders have been negotiating over both a health care package and a multibillion dollar water bond to ease flood danger and capture more winter runoff for use during California's dry summers. They must agree quickly if they are to put the measures before voters on the February presidential primary ballot.

With winter approaching, Schwarzenegger is also anticipating a return to the ski hill now that his leg is fully healed.

"He's cleared to ski. He's able to ski and I've heard him say he hopes to get out and hit the slopes this winter," McLear said. "But I don't know if he has any concrete plans to do so."

Source: http://www.mercurynews.com/news/ci_7428368?nclick_check=1