Former President George H.W. Bush and his wife Barbara Bush are showing improved health after being admitted to Houston Methodist earlier this month.
Physicians said Mr. Bush, who is still suffering from pneumonia, was able to leave the intensive care unit, and Mrs. Bush has been discharged from the hospital after completing treatment for bronchitis, according to an Associated Press report published by The San Diego News-Tribune.
Mr. Bush, 92, was taken to Houston Methodist Jan. 14 after shortness of breath, Jim McGrath, the post-White House spokesman for the couple, announced on Twitter Jan. 18. Mr. Bush was admitted to the ICU that afternoon "to address an acute respiratory problem stemming from pneumonia," Mr. McGrath said. At the time, he had a procedure to protect his airway. Physicians removed the breathing tube last Friday and by Monday said there is a possibility Mr. Bush could return home soon, according to the report.
On Jan. 18, Mrs. Bush, 91, was also admitted to Houston Methodist "as a precaution after experiencing fatigue and coughing." However, she is now "back to her normal self," Amy Mynderse, MD, said, according to the report. Mrs. Bush had the option of being discharged Sunday, but she decided to stay at the hospital one more night "to continue her recovery and to be closer to her husband," Mr. McGrath said Sunday on Twitter.