Prince Philip in Hospital after Suffering Chest Pains: December 24-27, 2011


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Well, some heart attacks are instantly fatal, and some lead to immediate congestive heart failure, and I think those are a bit more serious than ones that can be helped by a stent.

Here in the U.S., anyway, there is a definite scale from mild to fatal; a mild heart attack usually means the enzymes from heart damage show up in the blood but the ECG is back to normal by the time it's taken. Such a heart attack used to go undetected via ECG, but now blood work reveals them. In the case of some of my relatives, no heart damage could be detected via any sort of imaging, but heart cells were damaged and that damage showed up in the bloodwork (has to be done within a day or two IIRC). That's what's termed a "mild" heart attack here, anyway.
 
A short little note from 'The Daily Mail'. The quote from Her Majesty's speech that she gave on her and Duke's Golden Wedding anniversary brought tears to my eyes. They share a love and bond that so many want to find and so few are able to succeed. I hope His Highness gets well soon and returns to his home and family.

Prince Philip health scare: The debt we owe the no-nonsense Duke | Mail Online
 
One thing I am really happy about with all of this is the timing. Of course it was a sad loss to the family not to have Philip home on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, it did happen at a time when he does go back to Sandringham, he will be fully able to rest and recoup and not have to worry about engagements. Also, reading in another thread, it really looks like 2012 will be an extremely busy one for HM and the DoE and the fact that they've found and fixed the problem now may have prevented a worse scare during 2012.
 
Our ABC news here has reported that Prince Philip had a blocked artery and has had a stent put in to open the artery. "
Very common practise here. He will need blood thinning tablets for the rest of his life but should make a complete recovery as long as THEY DON'T ALLOW THE PATIENT OUT TOO SOON. My capitals. So all in all he should be okay. At 90, he will need to listen to his body more and know his limitations. Take it easy Dear Sir, we don't wish to lose you yet. When he is feeling better he can have a celebratory dinner with his family at home. I'm sure they may arrange something like that for him. And that would be good medicine for him, to have his family around.
 
The only problem with that idea is that it is very hard to get all 29 of them together at the same time.
 
I just heard of this and am glad to hear he has recovered and is doing well! :)
 
I'm glad that he's on the mend.
 
I wouldn't be surprised if Prince Philip, in his usual customary blunt manner, is making his opinions loud and clear about staying in the hospital, but it's definitely to his benefit that he is. It's always post-op that can be the most dangerous time, not necessarily the procedure itself, and this period of observation and recuperation is worth his missing the Christmas festivities to ensure that he fully recovers. The fact that he may have had a heart attack also adds to the seriousness of the event. I'm glad he's coming along in his recovery and time enough for additional R&R at Sandringham when he's deemed well enough to be released.
 
This looks so silly and sentimental when it is written down, but I hope that I can share my thoughts with fellow royal watchers who will see what I mean. I do not deny that the Queen and the BRF have wonderful help and service from many devoted staff, but even so, I do so worry about the Queen and Prince Philip. Whilst it is a different type of work from that which we all do, nevertheless it is tiring and particularly so for a couple who in effect are quite an elderly couple. Sometimes I think that some of us forget just how old the Queen and Prince Philip are. I certainly do. [Part of this, I think, is due to the fact that as the Queen Mother lived to such a great age, it made the Queen look somewhat 'younger' than she really was, because most of us do not have mothers who survive well past our own pensionable age. The fact that the Queen Mother was still alive made the Queen appear to be late-middle-aged herself, a fact visually reinforced by the fact that Her Majesty's style never really changes that much over the years - she has always dressed in the same sort of 'non-high fashion style' for years and year, which makes her look reassuringly 'almost the same' over the years.

I was talking to a neighbour after Church recently amd the conversation turned to the sad and recent passing [in his sleep] of a distinguished military neighbour, and the gist of the conversation was that the Brigadier had lived a full and long life and had reached 'the ripe old age of 84', which we all thought was 'a good old age'. And then I thought about this conversation later that evening and remembered that the Queen was still working a very full programme at 85 and ditto the Duke at 90.....

Really, Prince Philip has so far made few concessions to old age. It was announced that he had relinquished around a dozen [hardly a lot!!] of patronages on his 90th birthday, but even so that still leaves DOZENS more and many of these involve visits 'away from London' etc. About the only other thing he has cancelled recently was his trip to Italy for an animal charity event [from memory] where Princess Michael deputised for him.....Obviously you can't wrap the Duke in cotton wool and I am sure he wouldn't want that to happen, but I so want to say 'slow down, take care of yourself' etc etc.

I am sure Baroness of Brooks is quite right about Philip impatiently wanting to get up and get going again etc but to me - and whilst I certainly do not want to suggest that his doctors are worried about him etc etc - the fact that he is still remaning in hospital brings it home to me that he has got to take it slowly etc etc and be careful for a little while. As he is a member of the BRF, he could be discharged a good more easily than some 90 year olds - I mean, there is no concern about how he could take care of himself back at home etc - nurses, doctors etc etc could easily be made available back at Sandringham for his convalesence if feasible. The fact that he remains at Papworth is, to me, confirmation that he has had to contend with a reasonably serious cardiac situation if you see what I mean.....

[side note: I am lucky and privileged enough to have an invitation to am annual cocktail party hosted by the Duke at Windsor in February. It's a hightlight of my year. Now, I just wish they would cancel it and let the Duke have an evening off, if you see what I mean]
 
Here's an article that reports Philip's desire to be released from the hospital just hours after his operation. Given the severity of his condition compounded by his age, and the need for observation, I'm glad the doctors (and perhaps the Queen) prevailed by keeping him for however long it takes to recover. And even then, he needs to take it slow and careful for awhile upon his release and concentrate on his health, and the Queen as well who's facing an arduous and busy year ahead:

Duke of Edinburgh spends fourth night in hospital after heart scare as royals celebrate Christmas | Mail Online

And, Alex, hopefully the Duke will be in fine fettle by February to host his cocktail party. I'm sure by then he'll be up to a social night and raring to kick up his heels a bit.
 
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[side note: I am lucky and privileged enough to have an invitation to am annual cocktail party hosted by the Duke at Windsor in February. It's a hightlight of my year. Now, I just wish they would cancel it and let the Duke have an evening off, if you see what I mean]
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Oh, Diarist, that's most interesting, but how do you propose to get there and back?;)
 
Isnt it time that the Queen and Duke begin to allow the children (charles) and grandchildren ( William) to take on the brunt of the busy schedules coming up? I know that they do take on some but frankly the Queen and Duke need to start taking it easy. As I said I know that the Duke is a tough old man but enough is enough. He will definitely have to take it easy now. Im sure the doctors will tell him what he will need to do in order to keep healthy which Im sure will include the fact that he needs to slow down. Best wishes for the family.:flowers:
 
With my dad (who is 94) there is almost no way to slow him down. After mom died, I really tried to talk some sense into him. The grandkids did too. He likes being very active, when he can, and when he isn't feeling well, the only thing that gets him through is his own view of what he wants to do when he's better.

Now I've heard that Prince Philip isn't always keen on all the royal things he has to do (didn't he want to boycott his own 90th birthday party last year?) I hope he stays busy - but doing things he really wants to do (even if it's partridge hunting - I'm guessing he's a bit too old for fox hunting, if he was ever into that).

Would be nice to hear from some long time forum members about what Prince Philip's joys in life might be.
 
Princess Kaimi, at Sandringham, Prince Philip enjoys pheasant shooting.

His equestrian interests were as a participant [he apparently hates horse racing - a 'spectator sport'] and comprised polo, at which he was an excellent player, until arthritis forced him to give this up in the 1970's, and switch to his second great equestrian sporting love, carriage driving.

Carriage Driving was a sport which the Duke actually 'developed' i.e. helped to formulate the rules. The sport is not just sitting in the carriage and taking the reins but performing some of the disciplines that a horse trials competitor [e.g Zara!!] does on horse back. Thus the carriage driver has to undertake dressage [negotiating cones in an arena] and cross country, where the carriage driver has to drive his team of 4 horses/ponies against a timed clock through narrow gates and water splashes at speed. It is almost terrifying to watch, have a look

Prince Philip day 4 rwhs - YouTube

Prince Philip no longer competes, but as you can seem remains a judge! He does however drive a team of horses in a non competitive display parade at the horse show.

Hope this is of interest,

Alex
 
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I think painting may be his only quiet means of passing the time.
 
This is exactly what I had wished for! That sport is amazing (would love to see it - it's one I could spectate at for sure).

I remember now that he does some painting (when did he begin, I wonder?)
 
The fact that they are keeping him in hospital says a lot about the seriousness of the situation - when you consider the number of people who leave within a day or so of having this procedure - and remember this is a procudure usually done on older people.

I do hope that he slows down a bit but who will pick up the slack - Charles already does more than he does as does Anne and the other children. William and Harry are only available part-time due to military commitments so either some organisations have to give up a royal patron - not just Philip but a royal of any guise - or he has to keep going until William retires from the military and Kate starts to work full-time rather than continuing her part-time work she has done since leaving uni.
 
Diarist said:
The fact that he remains at Papworth is, to me, confirmation that he has had to contend with a reasonably serious cardiac situation if you see what I mean....
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Either that ..or the doctors simply refuse to take any risks! I cannot help thinking though that this experience could easily take its toll on dear old Prince Philip despite having access to the best care.

viv
 
1. I wasn't aware that the term heart attack was connected to Philips situations.
2. It is not unusual for some older people to not want to slow down, but a woman who is 85 and a man who is 90 would have been retired at least a decade ago. It is different when they want to do things that they enjoy, but working so hard at their age made need to be toned down a lot. Aren't there some countries that still have monarchies where the successor takes on most if not all the duties while the present monarch still holds the title?
 
No I had not heard the word heart attack be used, I know chest pains usually means a heart attack; but for him all I heard is pains in his chest. Elizabeth's mother lived to 101 so its not surprising that she is still kicking; but is longevity in Philip's family?
 
Speaking of longevity and Philip's family, he has far outlived his parents and siblings.

Princess Sophie lived to age 87. Princess Margarita lived to age 76. Princess Theodora lived to age 63 and actually passed away about 5 weeks before her own mother. Princess Cecilie died in a plane crash at age 26. As for their parents, Prince Andrew died at age 62 and Princess Alice died at age 84. Andrew died of heart failure, but there's a chance he did not have access to preventative health care during WWII. I remember reading somewhere that Theodora had heart troubles as well, but I cannot remember where I heard that.

It's likely that Philip has had excellent health care since 1947 and that has allowed him to remain active at age 90. Still, there's a point where the body finally wears out. I fear that Philip will be reaching that limit in the next few years.
 
XeniaCasaraghi said:
No I had not heard the word heart attack be used, I know chest pains usually means a heart attack; but for him all I heard is pains in his chest. Elizabeth's mother lived to 101 so its not surprising that she is still kicking; but is longevity in Philip's family?
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Like the Queen Philip's father died relatively young - but as a heavy smoker, drinker and through disappointment with the way his life was hurt by the Greek government.

His mother lived to 84.

His paternal grandparents: George I of Greece - assassinated aged 68
Olga - 75

His maternal grandparents: Prince Louis of Battenburg - 67
Princess Victoria - 87

So some long lived genes in the previous two generations.

He also has descent from Christian IX of Denmark who lived to 88 (his great-grandfather and of course Elizabeth's great-great grandfather - they are different generations from Christian and Louise).

He also has descent from Queen Victoria as, like the Queen, he is a great-great grandchild of hers - and I believe the oldest still surviving descendent or is it the oldest still living great-great grandchild.

He does have some good living genes in his system - which people seem to forget.
 
Any word on what the family did today? Did they end up going hunting?
 
Duke of Edinburgh 'is itching to go' after four nights in hospital - Telegraph

Police guarding the Duke were told to expect him to be discharged this morning unless he has taken a turn for the worse overnight.

Hospital sources said he was in good spirits and "itching to get out" so he can enjoy the rest of Christmas at Sandringham.

https://twitter.com/#!/SkyNewsRoyal/status/151579871913578496

#royal Buckingham Palace confirms the Duke of Edinburgh will depart from hospital today
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https://twitter.com/#!/BBCPeterHunt/status/151578415592505346

Prince Philip will be discharged from hospital this morning. #royal
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I'm so glad that Prince Phillip is recovering- it must have been hard to be away from all his family for all the Christmas Celebrations.
 
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ladongas said:
KP, may I borrow your glasses- mine are not strong enough either.
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I have to confess that I did not understand your response-and-winking-emoticom above, Ladongas, but I see now what you and several other forum members misread! I don't think it was anything to do with too much Christmas 'spirit' however, just a demonstration of the power of collocation - when we see 'Duke' and 'Windsor' in the same sentence, our brains [as royal watchers] tend to add in an 'of'! Anyway, no harm done.

And yes, I am off to Windsor Castle in February for a cocktail party hosted by the Duke. Who, I have to say ( hopefully without looking too fawning) is the perfect host. Somehow, HRH manages to join each little group of people and spend some time with us all and have a little topical light conversation with each of us, so that when we go home and people ask us 'Did you actually see the Duke?' we can reply that we certainly did and indeed had a little chat.

Which brings me to thinking that perhaps it is little parties like this that now will be - and indeed perhaps should be - cancelled. I am sure that I do not need to tell my friends here how much it means to me, but, let's face it, it's the sort of event that can easily be cancelled as it is not part of HRH's formal engagements, and that now he is 90, perhaps he should be concentrating on the 'big stuff' and preserving his strength by not having to spread himself thinly by including all the small stuff.

But there again, I somehow can't imagine the Duke slowing down. It's not in his nature, really.

Footnote: I was thinking last night that it is a good thing that the UK's best cardiac facility [one of the best in the world, come to that) is in East Anglia and therefore easily reached from Sandringham. Had the family been holidaying in (say) Balmoral, Papworth wouldn't have been so convenient for them,

Alex
 
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