PRESIDENT Clinton underwent surgery on his right knee after he injured himself in a fall down some steps at the Florida home of the Australian golfing champion, Greg Norman.
The operation to repair a torn tendon took place at Bethesda Naval Hospital in Maryland, outside Washington.
The President was not put under a general anaesthetic but was given "an epidural, which numbs the body from the waist down. "He is fully conscious," said the White House spokesman, Mr Michael McCurry.
This meant that the Vice President, Mr Al Gore, was not obliged to take over the powers of the presidency while Mr Clinton was unconscious.
The President indicated before entering hospital that he would still be travelling to Helsinki next Tuesday for the scheduled summit meeting with President Yeltsin of Russia.
However, there is uncertainty over whether he will be able to meet the Taoiseach, Mr Bruton, at the White House on St Patrick's Day for the traditional shamrock ceremony.
If the President is unable to fulfil this function, his place will probably be taken by Mr Gore.
Mrs Hillary Clinton and Mr Gore were with the President before he entered the operating theatre of what he called "the best hospital in America".
A meeting with King Hussein of Jordan planned for the White House on Monday has been cancelled.
The President will be obliged to wear a brace on his injured leg for several months until the tendon is healed. He will probably have to use crutches for several weeks. It will be about six months before he is able to jog again, according to a doctor at the naval hospital.
After his fall early yesterday morning, the President was taken to St Mary's Hospital in West Palm Beach where he was given an MRI (magnetic resonance imaging).
"He's feeling fine," a White House spokeswoman, Ms Mary Ellen Glynn, said after the President's initial check up. "He was never sedated at any time", and the issue of transferring power to the Vice President never came up.
Mr Clinton was in some pain at first but later was "resting comfortably" at the hospital, she added.
He slipped while leaving Mr Norman's oceanside estate in Palm Beach, Florida, Ms Glynn said. The fall caused excruciating pain to his knee, she added, but the President was laughing and joking about his condition on his way to hospital.
Mr Clinton was in Florida for two fund raising events. He was spending the night at a cottage on Mr Norman's 80 acre estate. Mr Clinton also took in a round of golf in preparation for a tournament yesterday at Mr Norman's championship course at Hobe Sound north of Palm Beach.
Mrs Clinton decided yesterday to postpone her departure for a two week tour of Africa by one day, until tomorrow, a spokesman lord her office said.