Supreme Court Justice Anthony M. Kennedy has had surgery in Washington to replace a stent — a device used to keep open a vein that had previously been blocked. The procedure was performed after he experienced “mild chest pains.” The Court, in a statement by spokeswoman Kathleen L. Arberg, said that the procedure was routine, and that there was no evidence of heart damage. He has returned to work, Ms Arberg said.
Merriam-Webster Online dictionary provides this definition of a stent: “a short narrow metal or plastic tube often in the form of a mesh that is inserted into the lumen of an anatomical vessel (as an artery or a bile duct) especially to keep a previously blocked passageway open.”
Here is the Court’s news release.
Kennedy, who marked his 70th birthday on July 23, has been on the Court since February 1988.
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