LONDON - Queen Elizabeth II's husband has undergone surgery for a blocked coronary artery, British royal officials said Friday.
Buckingham Palace said Prince Philip, 90, was taken from Sandringham, the queen's sprawling estate in rural Norfolk, to the cardiac unit at Papworth Hospital in Cambridge earlier Friday for "precautionary tests" after suffering chest pains.
The palace refused to confirm if Philip had suffered a heart attack, saying only that tests at the hospital showed a blocked coronary artery was causing Philip's discomfort.
"This was treated successfully by the minimally invasive procedure of coronary stenting," the palace said in a statement. "Prince Philip will remain in hospital under observation for a short period."
Dr. Simon Davies, consultant intervention cardiologist at the Royal Brompton Hospital in London, said Philip may have had a heart attack - or been on the verge of one - before the stent was inserted.
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"They put a miniature sausage-shaped balloon down the artery, pushed the balloon into the narrowed section and then (blew) it up," he said. "That forces the material that is blocking the artery outwards and then gets the blood flowing down the artery again."
A spokeswoman for the palace would not say if other members of the royal family were with Philip, who is also known as the Duke of Edinburgh. A hospital spokeswoman referred all calls to the palace.
Philip had been at Sandringham since Monday for the royal family's Christmas festivities, Buckingham Palace said.
Philip has been known to enjoy good health throughout his life and rarely misses royal engagements. The colorful and often outspoken husband of Elizabeth has been a familiar figure at his wife's side for decades.
