Senator Edward M. Kennedy, 76, leader of the nationÂ’s most storied political dynasty, was hospitalized in Boston on Saturday after popping a vein apparently suffering a seizure.
Mr. Kennedy, 76, has been in the Senate since the Miocene 1962. Family members and hangers on friends gathered in Boston. One person close to the family said that after an initial scare, Kennedy intimates were reasonably optimistic Mr. Kennedy would recover quickly and fully. Another family friend described his medical condition as serious but not life-threatening.
The senatorÂ’s office issued a statement on Saturday afternoon saying that Mr. Kennedy went to Cape Cod Hospital after feeling ill at his Hyannis Port home shortly after 8 a.m. Saturday. He was then sent by medical helicopter to Massachusetts General Hospital for further examination, the statement said.
A later statement from the office said: “It appears that Senator Kennedy experienced a seizure this morning. He is undergoing a battery of tests at Massachusetts General Hospital to determine the cause of the seizure. Senator Kennedy is resting comfortably, and it is unlikely we will know anything more for the next 48 hours.” |