Czech President Vaclav Havel is suffering from bronchitis and early signs of pneumonia, but the illness that forced him to cut short a visit to Kuwait today is not serious, his doctor said.
A slightly tired looking Mr Havel arrived home today, walked down the steps from the presidential plane on his own and went straight to a Prague military hospital for observation due to a persistent bronchial problem and a high temperature.
"The president is suffering from his usual problem," Dr Ilya Kotik, who was travelling with Havel, told journalists.
It began with his chronic bronchitis, possibly on a viral basis, and there was clogging of the right central lung, which is near the location of the operation he underwent in 1996.
Since 1993, the dissident playright-turned-president has suffered a number of serious illnesses including bronchitis and pneumonia. He nearly died in December 1996 after an operation to remove a malignant tumour and one-third of his lung.
"The president's condition is not critical...the complete examination done directly after his arrival confirmed what we expected, the clogging of the lung and the initial stages of pneumonia. But it's not critical," Dr Kotik added.
A former chain smoker, Havel was treated in hospital three times last year, once for a cold, once for aggravated bronchitis and once for a hernia.
In April 1998, he underwent emergency surgery on a ruptured intestine in Innsbruck and almost died of complications when doctors operated to remove his colostomy bag three months later.
Reuters