Lula da Silva undergoes surgery for an intracranial hemorrhage two months after a fall at home

Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, 79, is resting in the intensive care unit of a São Paulo hospital after undergoing emergency surgery to drain a brain hemorrhage, the Hospital Sírio-Libanês reported early Tuesday. The hemorrhage stems from a severe blow to his head suffered two months ago when he fell at his residence.

The president “underwent a craniotomy to drain a hematoma. The surgery passed without incident. At this moment the president is well, monitored in an ICU bed,” explains the report issued by the private medical center. The team of professionals attending him will appear before the press at 9:00 a.m. local time.

Lula underwent emergency surgery early Tuesday morning after being flown in an Brazilian Air Force plane from Brasília, where he lives, to São Paulo. He has been accompanied at all times by his wife, Janja da Silva, a sociologist and one of his main political advisors.

On October 19, Lula fell in a bathroom at his official residence, the Alvorada Palace in Brasília, and suffered a severe blow followed by hemorrhaging. He was taken to the hospital, where he received five stitches in the back of his neck and was advised to rest. He had to cancel a trip to Russia that he was scheduled to begin a few hours later to participate in the BRICS summit because his doctor recommended he avoid flights.

On Monday, President Lula felt discomfort while he was in the Planalto Palace in Brasília, where he met throughout the day with the leaders of Congress, among other authorities. He reported a headache and felt drowsy, according to the local press. His medical team decided to transfer him to a hospital in the capital for tests. An MRI scan detected the intracranial hemorrhage. An Air Force plane was immediately mobilized and flew him from Brasília to São Paulo. Transferred to the Hospital Sírio-Libanês medical center, he immediately went into surgery. The press reports that after the operation he woke up, was conscious, and then fell asleep.

Since he won the presidential election in October 2022, Lula has undergone surgery on three occasions. In November 2022 he had a lump in his throat removed. In September 2023, he was fitted with a hip prosthesis and now a cerebral hemorrhage has been drained. Despite his age, the Brazilian president is very active and exercises daily.

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