Chaney checks into a hospital

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WASHINGTON - Vice President Dick Cheney, who has a history of heart trouble, checked himself into a hospital after experiencing shortness of breath, an aide said.

Cheney, 63, who has had four heart attacks, returned from a hunting trip late this past week with a cold that left him short of breath, spokeswoman Mary Matalin said.

She said the vice president felt fine otherwise, but that as a precaution and given his health history, his cardiologist, Dr. Jonathan Reiner, recommended that Cheney go to George Washington University Hospital for tests to make sure it was just a cold.

"When I talked to him, he sounded just fine," Matalin said. She said Cheney was driven in a motorcade from his residence a few miles from the hospital and walked in under his own power. He did not need an ambulance.

"He was doing this just as a precaution," Matalin said.

The president was notified by his chief of staff, Andy Card, shortly after Bush returned from a bike ride Saturday at a Secret Service training facility outside Washington, White House spokesman Ken Lisaius said.

"On the recommendation of his doctors, the vice president is going to George Washington University Hospital for some tests," Lisaius said. "He experienced some shortness of breath Saturday morning and has had a bad cold, which could be the cause for the shortness of breath."

Reiner was to oversee the tests.

The 63-year-old Cheney has had four heart attacks, although none as vice president. He kept up a heavy travel schedule during Bush's re-election campaign, often traveling with his wife, Lynne Cheney.

Lisaius said Cheney is taking every precaution "as anyone with history should do" and is having himself checked out. It was unclear whether Cheney would be admitted to the hospital, or would be there only for tests.

In June 2001, Cheney had a pacemaker implanted in his chest. At his annual heart checkup on May 11, doctors determined that the pacemaker, called an implantable cardioverter defibrillator, was working fine and never had had to assist his heart.

The device is designed to activate automatically if needed to regulate the patient's heartbeat.

Ahead of the fall presidential campaign, Cheney dismissed speculation that his health might keep him from running again with Bush. He said his health had been good and that he could not think of any circumstances that would prompt to decline the role.

"He's asked me to serve again and I'll be happy to do that," Cheney said in March.

His first heart attack occurred in 1978, when he was 37. He had a second in 1984, and after suffering his third heart attack, in 1988, Cheney had quadruple bypass surgery to clear clogged arteries.

On Nov. 22, 2000, Cheney suffered what doctors called a "very slight" heart attack and had an angioplasty to open a clogged artery.

Cheney was back in the hospital on March 5, 2001, after complaining of chest pains. Doctors performed another angioplasty to reopen the same artery.

After his fourth heart attack, Cheney quit smoking, began regular daily exercises for 30 minutes on a treadmill and said he began watching his diet. He takes medication to lower his cholesterol.

Cheney has a long Washington history, dating from his 1975 job as President Ford's 34-year-old chief of staff.

After Ford lost the presidency, Cheney returned to Wyoming and began running for the state's only seat in the House of Representatives. He had his first heart attack during the campaign but still won easily.

He developed a conservative voting record in Congress; he opposed sanctions against South Africa's apartheid government and a ban on armor-piercing "cop killer" bullets and supported an antibusing amendment and funding for almost all proposed weapons systems.

Cheney was well-liked by colleagues of both parties during five terms and rose to the No. 2 position among House Republicans. In 1989, Cheney was the first President Bush's second choice as defense secretary _ Bush's first choice went down amid controversy _ and was confirmed unanimously.

At the Pentagon, Cheney helped recruit more than 30 nations to send troops to fight in and money to pay for the Persian Gulf War that drove Iraqi troops from neighboring Kuwait in January and February 1991.

He left government later that year to become head of Halliburton Co.
 
never mind he is out

WASHINGTON - Vice President Dick Cheney, who has a history of heart trouble, went to a hospital Saturday after experiencing shortness of breath. Tests found no abnormalities, an aide said, and Cheney left after three hours.

"I feel fine," the 63-year-old vice president said as he walked out with his wife, Lynne.

Cheney smiled and waved people gathered outside the hospital entrance.

"Sorry we ruined your Saturday," Mrs. Cheney told reporters. "We're great, thank you."

A pacemaker implanted in Cheney's chest three years ago indicated no irregularities during the past 90 days, said Mary Matalin, a spokeswoman for the vice president. The device gives doctors a three-month readout. She said an electrocardiogram, which measures the heart's electrical activity, showed no change.

His cardiologist, Dr. Jonathan Reiner, said he suspects the vice president has a respiratory infection.

"The vice president, complaining of a productive cough and shortness of breath, was evaluated at George Washington Medical Center today," Reiner said in a statement issued by the White House. "Tests ruled out any cardiac cause of the vice president's symptoms. Tests also ruled out pneumonia and other pulmonary causes. The vice president likely has a viral, upper respiratory infection."

Cheney, who has had four heart attacks, although none as vice president, returned Thursday night from a pheasant hunting trip in South Dakota with a cold that left him short of breath, Matalin said.

The vice president, who joined President Bush on Friday for meetings with British Prime Minister Tony Blair, felt fine otherwise, but his cardiologist recommended as a precaution that he go to the hospital for tests.

"Everything looks great," Matalin said before Cheney was released. "He's walking around from room to room in his street clothes just waiting for the blood work."

She said Cheney was driven in a motorcade from his residence a few miles from the hospital and walked in under his own power.

The president was notified by his chief of staff, Andy Card, shortly after Bush returned from a bike ride Saturday at a Secret Service training facility outside Washington, White House spokesman Ken Lisaius said.

In June 2001, Cheney had a pacemaker implanted in his chest. At his annual heart checkup on May 11, doctors determined the pacemaker, called an implantable cardioverter defibrillator, was working fine and had never needed to assist his heart.

The device is designed to activate automatically if needed to regulate the patient's heartbeat.

Ahead of the fall presidential campaign, Cheney dismissed speculation that his health might keep him from running again with Bush. He said his health had been good and he could not think of any circumstances that would prompt him to decline the role. He kept up a heavy travel schedule during Bush's re-election campaign, often traveling with his wife.

His first heart attack occurred in 1978, when he was 37. He had a second in 1984, and after suffering his third heart attack, in 1988, Cheney had quadruple bypass surgery to clear clogged arteries.

On Nov. 22, 2000, Cheney suffered what doctors called a "very slight" heart attack and had an angioplasty to open a clogged artery.

Cheney was back in the hospital on March 5, 2001, after complaining of chest pains. Doctors performed another angioplasty to reopen the same artery.

After his fourth heart attack, Cheney quit smoking, began regular daily exercises for 30 minutes on a treadmill and said he began watching his diet.
 
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