Nebraska governor’s prognosis is good after falling from a horse

Government of Nebraska Jim Pillen was in the intensive care unit at an Omaha hospital on Monday after undergoing a medical procedure to treat an injured spleen he suffered when he was knocked off a horse.

The governor’s condition was stable. Doctors said his prognosis was positive, despite seven rib fractures, a small fracture in one of his vertebrae and a minor kidney injury that is expected to heal on its own. Pillen was expected to leave the intensive care unit sometime later Monday, although he was expected to remain at the University of Nebraska Medical Center for at least another day.

Pillen, 68, underwent a minimally invasive procedure, called a prophylactic embolization, for the spleen damage. Doctors threaded a wire into the arteries near the spleen and placed coils there to stop the bleeding, said Dr. Hillman Terzian, an acute care surgeon and medical director for emergency general surgery at UNMC.

Pillen did well during the procedure and was stable the entire time, Terzian said. The governor was sedated for the procedure, which lasted less than an hour.

The governor suffered no damage to his nervous system and there were no signs of head trauma or injury to his spinal canal, Terzian said. He is motivated to get out of bed and has already run laps, “which is very impressive,” Terzian said.

Being in intensive care is common for people with a spleen injury similar to Pillen’s and with rib fractures at his age, Terzian said.

He gave the governor “a very good prognosis.”

“We don’t expect anyone with their injuries to run a marathon the next day, but we would like them to be out of bed, to show us that they can pick up small objects, things like that,” Terzian said. .

Pain management is his doctors’ biggest focus right now, said Dr. Charity Evans. No other surgeries are planned, although doctors have options to treat his ribs, Terzian said.

Pillen was elected governor in 2022. His office previously said he was riding with family members when he was knocked from a new horse and injured Sunday.

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Dura reported from Fargo, North Dakota.