Argentina's president will undergo surgery to surgically remove blood between her brain and skull that has been causing new and worrying symptoms.
The doctors who discovered the subdural haematoma had ordered Cristina Fernandez on Saturday to rest for a month. In some patients, such blood clots reabsorb by themselves over time.
But the situation became more urgent after Fernandez felt a weakness and numbness in her upper left arm on Sunday evening, according to an announcement from the Fundacion Favaloro, one of Argentina's top cardiology hospitals.
"Facing these symptoms, the team decided on surgical intervention," the hospital statement said.
The surgery, scheduled for Tuesday, involves drilling small holes through the skull to remove the remnants of blood that the presidency said was the result of a still unexplained blow to her head on August 12.
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Earlier on Monday, even as Fernandez returned to the hospital for pre-surgical exams, her Vice President Amado Boudou made no mention of the planned operation.
He said in a speech that top officials would run the country as a team "while she gets the rest she deserves".
"What Cristina wants is for us to maintain the administration," Boudou said, "and to carry on this project that (her late president and husband) Nestor Kirchner began and that Cristina has continued."
"Be strong Cristina! We're all going forward together!" Boudou said.
What he didn't say - and no other official ventured to guess - was whether Fernandez will formally delegate her executive powers during the surgery, or while she recovers. Boudou is under investigation for alleged corruption and illegal enrichment and currently has one of the worst images among Argentine politicians.
