U.S. Senator Fetterman being observed at Washington hospital

[February 09, 2023]  (Reuters) - U.S. Senator John Fetterman, who suffered a stroke last year, was taken to hospital late on Wednesday but is in "good spirits" and showed no signs of a new stroke, his office said in a statement.  

U.S. Senator John Fetterman (D-PA) reacts as he is ceremonially sworn into office by Vice President Kamala Harris as the new U.S. Senator from Pennsylvania in the Old Senate Chamber on the first day of the 118th Congress at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, U.S., January 3, 2023. REUTERS/Jon Cherry

The 53-year-old Pennsylvania Democrat asked his staff to take him to a hospital in Washington after feeling lightheaded at a Senate Democratic retreat, his spokesman Joe Calvello said.

Fetterman remains at George Washington Hospital for observation and additional testing, the spokesman said, adding he would "provide more information when we have it."

"He is in good spirits and talking with his staff and family," Calvello wrote.

Fetterman had a stroke last year while campaigning for one of the key political swing state's two U.S. Senate seats.

The stroke initially left lingering problems with his speech and hearing that sometimes cause verbal miscues, but Fetterman's doctor has said the politician could serve in office with no restrictions as long as he followed recovery instructions.

Fetterman, in a statement on his recovery last year, said he had been diagnosed with a heart condition years earlier but had stopped taking his medication, avoided going to the doctor and ignored warning signs.

(Reporting by Susan Heavey in Washington and Akanksha Khushi in Bengaluru; Editing by Raissa Kasolowsky and Sharon Singleton)

[© 2023 Thomson Reuters. All rights reserved.]

Copyright 2022 Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.  Thompson Reuters is solely responsible for this content.