Campaign: Sanders had heart attack, released from hospital

Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders had a heart attack, his campaign has confirmed as the Vermont senator was released from a Nevada hospital.

The 78-year-old was at a campaign event Tuesday when he experienced chest discomfort and was taken to a hospital where he was diagnosed with a heart attack. The senator was transferred to Desert Springs Hospital Medical Center, where doctors inserted two stents to open up a blocked artery in his heart, according to a statement from the Las Vegas doctors.

The doctors, Arturo Marchand, Jr and Arjun Gururaj, said the rest of his arteries were normal.

A blocked artery can cause a heart attack, which means that an area of the heart is suffering and in danger of damage because it's not getting enough blood or oxygen. An artery-opening procedure like the one Sanders had, and placing stents, which are tiny scaffolds to keep the artery open, restores blood flow and helps prevent future problems.

The statements from Sanders and his doctors do not indicate whether his heart suffered any permanent damage, or the extent of any. The sooner blood flow is restored, the better the chance of survival without damage, which is why heart experts urge anyone thinking they might be having a heart attack to call 911.

The doctors said the rest of his stay before being discharged Friday was "uneventful with good expected progress." The campaign also released a statement from Sanders where he thanked the doctors, nurses and hospital staff.

"After two and a half days in the hospital, I feel great, and after taking a short time off, I look forward to getting back to work," he said.

Soon after, he posted a video on Twitter showing him standing at a Las Vegas park with his wife.

"I just got out of the hospital a few hours ago and I'm feeling so much better," Sanders said. "See you soon on the campaign trail." He and his wife both thanked people for their warm wishes.

He was expected to return to Vermont.

"There should not be an overreaction to this," said Dr Steve Nissen, a heart expert at Cleveland Clinic who has not treated Sanders himself. "If he were my patient, I might ask him to avoid 16-hour days for at least a little bit of time. But there's absolutely no reason he can't get back to full activity soon."
"What's more important than his age is his condition before the event. He strikes me as an incredibly vigorous and energetic guy. People like that tend to do well," Nissen said, adding that he doesn't buy the idea that stress causes heart attacks. "The culprit is a blockage in the coronary artery."