Ford Reported OK Following Abscess Surgery

PHILADELPHIA — Former President Ford, already hospitalized after suffering a minor stroke during the Republican National Convention, underwent surgery Saturday to drain an abscess in his tongue caused by a rare bacterial infection, doctors said.

“The president came through the operation and the anesthesia exceedingly well,” said Dr. Robert Schwartzman, head of the neurology department at Hahnemann University Hospital.

Ford, 87, will have to undergo weeks of outpatient antibiotic treatment to keep the infection from recurring, doctors said. But they also said he had made a full neurological recovery from the stroke and could be ready to leave the hospital after a few more days of observation.

At a news conference, Schwartzman said, “He is now, I think, probably completely recovered from his small stroke.”

The former president had been suffering from a painfully swollen tongue that caused him to slur his speech since last Sunday. The problem was causing Ford a great deal of pain and made it increasingly difficult for him to speak and swallow, doctors said.

Doctors initially suspected the problem was linked to the stroke until a medical test showed evidence of an abnormal growth, raising fears of cancer.

Surgeons set out to perform a biopsy Saturday morning but found the abscess during an hourlong operation and drained the swelling. They also took tissue samples that were found to be free of cancer, doctors said.