Randy Travis, country music star, has had a serious bout in the hospital, enduring congestive heart failure, a stroke, and a viral upper respiratory infection. He remains in critical condition.
It seems the star who brought us such hits as “Forever and Ever, Amen,” “Diggin’ Up Bones” and “Deeper Than a Holler,” not to mention “Three Wooden Crosses,” got sick first when he “recently acquired viral cardiomyopathy,” as his publicist Kirt Webster said. This lead to swelling of the heart and to the congestive heart failure, which he was hospitalized for on Wednesday, and led, finally to a stroke upon which he subsequently underwent surgery to relieve pressure in the brain on Wednesday night.
The stroke, therefore was “a complication of his congestive heart failure.” He has meanwhile been given “an implantable mechanical pump that helps pump blood from the lower chambers of your heart the the rest of your body,” as the Mayo Clinic describes the device.
Travis “underwent the placement of an Impella peripheral left ventricular assist device for stabilizations prior to transferring hospitals,” said Webster, as CNN reported.
So all in all a tough few days. “His family and friends here with him at the hospital request your prayers and your support,” said Webster’s statement.