Melania Trump underwent the embolization procedure for an undisclosed ailment at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center in Bethesda, Md., early Monday.
Melania Trump has undergone surgery to “treat a benign kidney condition,” the White House said in a statement Monday.
The first lady underwent an embolization procedure at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center in Bethesda, Md.
She is expected to remain at the hospital for the rest of the week, officials said.
“The first lady looks forward to a full recovery so she can continue her work on behalf of children everywhere," the White House said.
Trump, who turned 48 last month, unveiled her formal initiative, Be Best, during an 11-minute speech in the Rose Garden on May 7.
The first lady’s comprehensive program will embrace three tenets — well-being, fighting opioid abuse and positivity on social media — and comes after she had spent months focusing on helping children in a series of public events.
"As a mother and as first lady, it concerns me that in today's fast-paced and ever-connected world, children can be less prepared to express or manage their emotions and oftentimes turn to forms of destructive or addictive behavior such as bullying, drug addiction or even suicide," she said at the time. “I feel strongly that as adults we can and should be best at educating our children about the importance of a healthy and balanced life.”
President Trump tweeted about going to visit his wife, saying she was fine.
New York Democratic Sen. Chuck Schumer of New York, a fierce opponent of the president, was among those wishing the first lady a "speedy recovery."
Few details were released about the first lady's condition. CBS News chief medical correspondent Dr. Jon LaPook provided a general description of the procedure.
"It involves cutting off the arterial blood supply to something… [Doctors] put some substance into an artery that's feeding whatever this benign condition is that they're treating and then that cuts off the blood supply, cuts off the oxygen and whatever they're treating would presumably shrink and start to be less important than it was before."
One example of a benign growth on the kidneys that may be treated with an embolization procedure is an angiomyolipoma, or a benign collection of fat and muscle.
"It does tend to happen more in women than in men and it tends to be in middle age," LaPook said.
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