Gloria Macapagal Arroyo hospitalized

Former president and now Pampanga Rep. Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo was confined on Thursday at the St. Lukes’ Medical Center in Quezon City for cervical radiculopathy, a neck ailment.

She was scheduled to have a meeting with her constituents at Pampanga’s 2nd district on Friday and later an interview with House reporters but postponed them after complaining of severe pain in the neck on Thursday morning.

Marilen Lagniton, St. Luke’s vice president for customer affairs, said Arroyo was being attended to by Dr. Juliet Cervantes, a liver specialist and Dr. Mario Ver, an orthopedist.

Elena Bautista-Horn, Arroyo’s spokesperson, assured the public that the ailment was not life threatening.

According to the University of Maryland Spine Program, cervical radiculopathy results from an irritated or pinched nerve root that supplies sensation to the shoulder or arm. The condition concerns the cervical spine, which consists of the first seven vertebrae just below the skull.

A nerve root leaves the spinal cord and the cervical spine as it travels to the shoulder or arm. However, a nerve root may be irritated or pinched by a herniated disc, which happens when too much pressure is exerted on the intervertebral disc, such as too much neck movement.

Aging discs may also result in the formation of bone spurs that can pinch the nerve root.

Horn could not say if this was the first time Arroyo experienced such a condition, but disclosed that Arroyo would be discharged in the hospital in a few days and then undergo physical therapy which might ease the pain prevent further injury to the neck.

Horn said Arroyo still wanted to attend the celebration of the 40th wedding anniversary of Sen. Miriam Defensor-Santiago and her husband on June 19.