The surgery is to deal with lumbar spinal stenosis, a common cause of lower back pain in older adults, Cheney spokeswoman Lucy Tutwiler said.
Spinal stenosis is a narrowing of the spinal canal -- the passage for the spinal cord -- which in turn puts pressure on nerves, causing pain. Surgery is done to widen the passage and ease that pressure, typically by removing a bit of the vertebra.
Dr. Anthony Caputy, chairman of the hospital's neurosurgery department, is performing the operation.
- Defibrillator implanted
- Defibrillator replaced
- Surgery to treat aneurysms behind his knees
- Electric shock administered to his heart to restore its rhythm
- Surgery to correct the abnormal heart rhythm
He also had hospital visits after feeling shortness of breath and the development of a blood clot in his leg after a long trip to Asia.