Kennedy faces more hospital tests after seizure

DOCTORS in the US were working yesterday to determine the cause of a seizure that sent Senator Edward Kennedy to the hospital and prompted an outpouring of support for the liberal political icon.

Kennedy, 76, spent a peaceful night at Massachusetts General Hospital, a top aide said, and few details of his condition were expected before a battery of tests was completed by this morning at the earliest.

“Senator Kennedy had a good night’s sleep and we expect today to be a very quiet day,” said the aide.

The Massachusetts Democrat, the lone-surviving son in a famed political family, was flown on Saturday morning to Massachusetts General after becoming ill at his Hyannisport home and being treated at the emergency room of Cape Cod Hospital.

His physician said he did not suffer a stroke, as was first suspected, and had recovered enough by Saturday afternoon to watch a Boston Red Sox baseball game on television. His wife, Vicki, his five children and stepchildren and his niece, Caroline Kennedy, were among those to visit him.

“Over the next couple of days, Senator Kennedy will undergo further evaluation to determine the cause of the seizure, and a course of treatment will be determined at that time,” said Dr Larry Ronan, who added Kennedy was “not in any immediate danger”.

In October, Mr Kennedy had surgery to remove a blockage in his left carotid artery — a main supplier of blood to the face and brain. This type of operation is performed to prevent a stroke.

Mr Kennedy, the second-longest serving member of the Senate and a dominant figure in national Democratic Party politics, was elected in 1962, filling out the term won by his brother, John F Kennedy.

Kennedy is active for his age, maintaining an aggressive schedule on Capitol Hill and across Massachusetts.