Arnold Schwarzenegger went under the knife to have a valve in his heart replaced, Us Weekly can confirm.
The Terminator actor, 70, had a pulmonic valve replacement in Los Angeles on Thursday, March 29, according to his spokesperson, Daniel Ketchell. Schwarzenegger previously had the valve replaced in 1997 due to a congenital heart defect. “[Arnold is] doing very well post surgery,” Ketchell tells Us. “He’s joking with people, laughing and in great spirits. He had his valve successfully replaced.”
Ketchell noted in a statement to ABC that the procedure was planned and the star is now in stable condition. “We want to thank the entire medical team for their tireless efforts,” the statement reads.
“That 1997 replacement valve was never meant to be permanent, and has outlived its life expectancy, so he chose to replace it yesterday through a less-invasive catheter valve replacement,” Ketchell told The Washington Post. He said that an open-heart surgery team was available during the operation in case of complications, but that’s typical in such a situation.
TMZ was the first to report Schwarzenegger’s surgery.
The former California governor shared that he had undergone shoulder surgery, alongside costar Sylvester Stallone, following filming on The Expendables 2 in 2012. “After all the action, stunts had physical abuse shooting The Expendables 2 and The Last Stand, it was time for a little tune up on my shoulder,” he wrote on WhoSay, showing himself hooked up to an IV beside Stallone in the hospital. “Look who was coincidentally waiting in line behind me for his shoulder surgery. Now we’re ready for another round of great times and action when we shoot The Tomb.”
Schwarzenegger has been out and about in recent weeks, participating in a Facebook Live with Ohio governor John Kasich on March 21, and speaking at SXSW on March 11.
