LOS ANGELES -- Former California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger was recovering Friday morning after undergoing heart surgery at a Los Angeles hospital, a spokesman for the box-office legend said.
The planned procedure took place Thursday at Cedars-Sinai, where a pulmonic valve was successfully replaced, according to the spokesman, Daniel Ketchell. The original valve was replaced due to a congenital heart defect in 1997.
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The replacement valve "was never meant to be permanent, and has outlived its life expectancy, so he chose to replace it yesterday through a less-invasive catheter valve replacement," Ketchell said in a statement, adding that the 70-year-old Schwarzenegger was in stable condition.
An open-heart surgery team was standing by in case the catheter procedure could not be performed, the statement said.
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"We want to thank the entire medical team for their tireless efforts," Ketchell said. "His first words were actually 'I'm back,' so he is in good spirits."