‘Loose screw’ sends Revilla back to hospital

The second operation on Sen. Ramon Revilla in the United States was successful although he is still in a critical condition, Sen. Robert Jaworski said yesterday.

Jaworski, who arrived yesterday from the United States to comfort Revilla, his father-in-law, said that a second operation became necessary after Revilla fell off his wheel chair last May 2, turning loose a "screw" placed by Stanford Medical Center surgeons in a nine-hour operation April 11 to tighten up torn ligaments in his spinal column.

He said that the second operation on Revilla, done for four hours, is still in a critical condition despite the successful operation on his spinal column. The surgery was successful and Revilla had already left Stanford for a private residence.

"He still has difficulty walking, but with the help of prayers, we believe he could recover faster," Jaworski said.

The surgeons at Stanford decided last April 11 on an immediate operation on the senator after medical examination revealed torn ligaments and fissures in the upper region of his spinal column.

The doctors were concerned that slight to moderate trauma in the affected region might cause partial or total paralysis as the fissures might crack and damage nerves in the spinal cord.

Earlier, Revilla’s son, former Cavite Gov. Bong Revilla said in a press statement that Revilla was doing very well and doctors did not see any complication arising from the operation. He said that the senator might have to spend two weeks more in the US hospital to recuperate.

Jaworski, who had just arrived from the United States, said that Revilla still could not move "that much" up to now and that it would take up to three months before he could go past the critical period.

"It was a close to nine-hour operation. His spinal vertebrae were replaced with special metal so they could be functional," he said of the "dissectomy and corpectomy" operation conducted on the spinal column of Revilla.

Jaworski said that while the operation was successful, Revilla remains in his most critical stage "up to another three months."

Sen. Ramon Revilla is still in a critical condition despite the successful operation on his spinal column by surgeons of the Stanford University Medical Center last April 11, his son-in-law. Sen. Robert Jaworski revealed yesterday. — Efren Danao