Sen. John Fetterman released from the hospital after feeling lightheaded
PITTSBURGH (KDKA/AP) — Pennsylvania Sen. John Fetterman has been released from the hospital, his office said Friday evening.
Fetterman, who had a stroke during his campaign last year, was hospitalized Wednesday at George Washington University Hospital after feeling lightheaded while attending a Democratic retreat in Washington. He stayed for testing, which was negative for another stroke or seizure, his office said.
At the hospital, the former Braddock mayor was being monitored with an electroencephalogram (EEG) - an instrument that measures brainwaves - for signs of a seizure, Fetterman's communications director Joe Calvello said Thursday.
On Friday evening, his office released a statement, saying:
"A few minutes ago, Senator John Fetterman was discharged from The George Washington University Hospital. In addition to the CT, CTA, and MRI tests ruling out a stroke, his EEG test results came back normal, with no evidence of seizures. John is looking forward to spending some time with his family and returning to the Senate on Monday."
In November, the 53-year-old Fetterman won the seat held by now-retired Republican Pat Toomey after a hard-fought contest against GOP nominee Mehmet Oz. Fetterman, who was the lieutenant governor, defeated the celebrity heart surgeon by 5 percentage points, flipping a seat that was key to Democrats holding the Senate majority. More than $300 million was spent during the campaign, making it the most expensive Senate race in 2022.
His campaign was derailed on May 13 when he had what he later called a near-fatal stroke just days before the Democratic primary. He spent much of the rest of the campaign in recovery, refusing to release his medical records or allow his doctors to answer reporters' questions.
Oz made an issue of whether his opponent was honest about the effects of the stroke and whether Fetterman was fit to serve, but the Democrat insisted his doctors said he could have a full recovery.
As a result of the stroke, Fetterman has struggled with auditory processing disorder, a common aftereffect that can leave a person unable to speak fluidly and quickly process spoken conversation into meaning.
The effects of the stroke were apparent in Fetterman's uneven performance during the fall campaign's only debate when he struggled to complete sentences and jumbled words.
On election night, he told cheering supporters he ran for "anyone that ever got knocked down that got back up."