Dick Cheney (US, VP) during a hunting accident is expected to stay in the hospital for about a week after suffering a mild heart attack when a shotgun pellet in his chest traveled to his heart.
Harry Whittington, who was moved back to the intensive care unit Tuesday after the heart attack, will be watched to make sure more metal pellets do not reach other vital organs, hospital officials said. The 78-year-old was reported in stable condition.
Doctors at Christus Spohn Hospital Corpus Christi-Memorial said Whittington suffered a "silent heart attack" — obstructed blood flow, but without the classic heart-attack symptoms of pain and pressure.
Doctors said they decided to leave the pellet alone rather than operate to remove it. They said they are highly optimistic Whittington will recover and live a healthy life with the pellet in him.
Hospital officials said they were not concerned about the six to 200 other pieces of birdshot that might still be lodged in his body.
Cheney was using 7 1/2 shot from a 28-gauge shotgun. Shotgun pellets typically are made of steel or lead; the pellets in 7 1/2 shot are just under one-tenth of an inch in diameter.
Cheney watched a news conference Tuesday where doctors described Whittington's complications. Then the vice president called and wished him well and asked if there was anything he needed.
"The vice president said that he stood ready to assist. Mr. Whittington's spirits were good, but obviously his situation deserves the careful monitoring that his doctors are providing," the vice president's office said in a statement.
Cheney, an experienced hunter, has not spoken publicly about the accident, which took place just before nightfall Saturday while the vice president was aiming for a quail on a ranch in South Texas. Critics of the Bush administration called for more of an explanation from Cheney himself.
Through hospital officials, Whittington has declined to comment.
Hospital officials said they knew Whittington had some birdshot near his heart and that there was a chance it could move closer since scar tissue had not had time to harden and hold the pellet in place.
After Whittington developed an irregular heartbeat, doctors performed a cardiac catheterization, in which a thin, flexible tube is inserted into the heart, to diagnose his condition, said Peter Banko, the hospital's administrator.
The shot was either touching or embedded in the heart muscle near the top chambers, called the atria, officials said. Two things resulted:
• It caused inflammation that pushed on the heart in a way to temporarily block blood flow, what the doctors called a "silent heart attack." This is not a traditional heart attack where an artery is blocked. They said Whittington's arteries were healthy.
• It irritated the atria, caused an irregular heartbeat known as atrial fibrillation, which is not immediately life-threatening. But it must be treated because it can spur blood clots to form. Most cases can be corrected with medication.
White House physicians helped advise on the course of treatment, hospital officials said.
Texas officials said the shooting was an accident and no charges have been brought against the vice president.
A Texas Parks and Wildlife Department report issued Monday said Whittington was retrieving a downed bird and stepped out of the hunting line he was sharing with Cheney. "Another covey was flushed and Cheney swung on a bird and fired, striking Whittington in the face, neck and chest at approximately 30 yards," the report said.
People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals said it has sent a letter to the chairman of the Texas Parks and Wildlife Commission urging that Cheney's hunting license be revoked. 
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hala ka!
