Secretary of state faints, sustains concussion
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WASHINGTON (AP) -- Secretary of State Hillary Clinton sustained
a concussion last week after becoming extremely dehydrated and fainting
while suffering from a stomach virus, the State Department said.
The
65-year-old Clinton is recovering at home and has been advised by her
doctors to continue to rest and avoid strenuous activity and cancel all
work events for the next week. She had been scheduled to testify before a
pair of congressional panels looking into the Sept. 11 attack against a
diplomatic outpost in Benghazi, Libya.
Dr.
Lisa Bardack of the Mt. Kisco Medical Group and Dr. Gigi El-Bayoumi of
George Washington University said Saturday that Clinton was suffering
from a stomach virus and fainted after becoming extremely dehydrated.
Clinton
was diagnosed with a concussion Thursday after fainting at home earlier
this week, according to a State Department official who spoke on the
condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to discuss
Clinton's injury publicly. The doctors did not determine it to be a
"severe" concussion, the official said.
Clinton,
who is expected to leave her job soon, skipped an overseas trip this
past week because of the stomach virus, the State Department said
Saturday.
President Barack Obama telephoned his top diplomat Saturday to wish her well, a White House official said.
The
State Department said in a statement that Clinton will continue to work
from home in the week ahead and looks forward to returning to the
office "soon," the statement said.
The Senate
Foreign Relations Committee said it won't hear from Clinton as planned
at a Thursday hearing into the attack at the outpost in Benghazi that
killed four Americans, including the U.S. ambassador. The House Foreign
Affairs Committee also said Clinton would no longer give scheduled
testimony at its hearing Thursday on Libya.
Senior State Department officials William Burns and Thomas Nides are to take Clinton's place at both hearings.
Clinton's
aides on Saturday informed the Senate committee chairman, Sen. John
Kerry, about her health, and the Massachusetts Democrat "insisted that
given her condition, she could not and should not appear" as planned,
said Kerry spokeswoman Jodi Seth. Obama is expected to nominate Kerry to
succeed Clinton.
Clinton backed out of a trip
to North Africa and the Persian Gulf on Monday because she was sick.
She caught the virus during a recent visit to Europe.
The
former first lady is known for her grueling travel schedule and is the
most traveled secretary of state, having visited 112 countries while in
the job.
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