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| FILE -In this Jan. 10, 2010 photo Singer Bret Michaels arrives at the NBC Universal Winter 2010 press tour party in Pasadena, Calif. |
LOS ANGELES (AP) -- Bret Michaels is back in the hospital. The rocker and reality TV star suffered what doctors call a "warning stroke" and has been diagnosed with a patent forum ovale, or hole in the heart, according to a report Thursday on his website. Michaels' publicist, Joann Mignano, confirmed the report.
Michaels was hospitalized after experiencing numbness on the left side of his body, particularly in his face and hands.
Doctors say the condition is operable and treatable and likely unrelated to the brain hemorrhage the 47-year-old suffered last month.
Michaels' neurosurgeon said that while the Poison frontman has a "fantastic attitude" about making a full recovery, "Bret's brain and body are not quite 100 percent yet, especially with the hole found in his heart."
Additional tests were being conducted to determine the best course of treatment. Doctors said Michaels is currently being treated with a daily injection of a blood thinner to reduce the risk of clots.
The website says Michaels was "up, walking, talking, continuing his daily rehab and very happy to be alive."
"He has made it clear he is sick and tired of being in the hospital and is ready to rock again," the site says.
Michaels' expected appearance at Sunday's finale of Donald Trump's "The Celebrity Apprentice" in New York may now be in question. Messages left for Trump and NBC were not immediately returned
