Doctors monitoring Arroyo’s blood pressure rise, risk of infection

MANILA, Philippines—Doctors are addressing the unusual rise of former President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo’s blood pressure and minimizing her infection risk through antibiotics, as her main attending physician hints that “external factors” are taking a toll on the now Pampanga representative.

“Medically, she is not in a serious condition,” Dr. Juliet Gopez-Cervantes on Monday told reporters outside the St. Luke’s Medical Center in Global City, where the former president has been confined since last week.

Arroyo’s six-member medical team, however, noted the rise in her blood pressure since Sunday and despite addressing the problem through hypertension medicines, the former president was not responding as doctors expected.

Cervantes inferred that the maelstrom of controversy – her questionable victory in the 2004 election – which has been unraveling outside the medical facility might have gotten to the former president. This has been hampering her recovery, the doctor said.

Arroyo has been advised against watching television, reading the newspapers, or even using her cellular phone, “but what we don’t know is what happens when we have our backs turned,” the doctor said

“She is being monitored closely because of her blood pressure and because of the risk of infection, which is normal after surgery,” Cervantes added.