Bolsonaro undergoes new surgery to treat hiccups

Rio de Janeiro.- Brazil’s former president Jair Bolsonaro, sentenced to 27 years and three months in prison for sedition, underwent a new surgery this Saturday to treat the hiccups he has been suffering from for months, his family reported. The intervention consisted of an anesthetic block of the phrenic nerve, according to his wife Michelle Bolsonaro. The surgery was successful and the former president is already recovering, according to the doctors who participated in the operation, surgeon Cláudio Birolini told the press. For his part, cardiologist Brasil Ramos Caiado stated that the hiccups have caused extreme fatigue to Bolsonaro and interrupted his sleep. According to the medical bulletin released this Saturday, the right phrenic nerve was blocked today and the procedure to block the left one is scheduled for Monday. According to the note, Bolsonaro will “continue with physiotherapy for rehabilitation, measures to prevent venous thrombosis and clinical care”. The expectation is that the former president will remain hospitalized at the private DF Star hospital in Brasilia for between three and seven more days before returning to the headquarters of the Federal Police, where he is serving his sentence for attempted coup.

The Former President’s Health

Bolsonaro had already undergone surgery on Christmas for a bilateral inguinal hernia and was in the process of recovering with physiotherapy, but on Friday night he suffered a severe bout of hiccups. The former head of state was temporarily released from prison on Wednesday, after the procedure was authorized by Judge Alexandre de Moraes. The far-right leader was convicted of leading a plot to try to stay in power after losing the 2022 elections, in which Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva was victorious. The retired Army captain has been serving his sentence since the end of November in a special room at the Federal Police Superintendence in Brasilia. In addition to the sentence, the former head of state (2019-2022) is disqualified from running for elections until 2060.