Bowman Released From Hospital

By CBSNews.com staff CBSNews.com staff

July 16, 1998 / 9:08 PM EDT / CBS Sportsline

Detroit Red Wings coach Scotty Bowman was released from the hospital on Friday in excellent spirits after undergoing an angioplasty Thursday, his doctor said.

But

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Bowman, 64, needs to lower his cholesterol and blood pressure before he can make a decision on whether he will return as Red Wings coach next season, Dr. William O'Neill, William Beaumont Hospital's chief of cardiology, said Friday.

"This whole medical thing is kind of a shock to him and his family. I think they're taking a careful assessment of it," O'Neill said. "There are some health issues he and his wife want to focus on now. I think he's put that decision on the back burner now."

Bowman was also diagnosed with adult-onset diabetes during testing this week, O'Neill said. The coach is being placed on a strict diet to try to control his elevated blood sugar and cholesterol. Bowman is also taking medication to control his high blood pressure.

O'Neill discovered Bowman's blocked heart artery Thursday morning and immediately performed the angioplasty. With angioplasty, a tiny balloon is threaded into the heart and then inflated. Once inflated, it squeezes open narrowed passages.

The procedure didn't completely clear the blockage, but doctors implanted two wire mesh devices, called stents, across the artery.

O'Neill said Bowman's prognosis is excellent, he's in great physical health, and isn't overweight. The heart disease is genetic, he said.

O'Neill said Bowman showed no symptoms of heart disease but last week began medical tests because of the death last month of his younger brother. Jack Bowman, a longtime NHL scout, died after a heart attack during routine bypass surgery. He was 61.

A trio of tests Bowman underwent last week -- a cardiac stress test among them -- produced conflicting results, prompting Thursday's use of a catheter that discovered the blocked artery, O'Neill said.

He said Bowman will need periodic testing during the next six months, when it's most likely for the arteries to become clogged again. Bowman will be able to undergo previously scheduled knee surgery once the stents heal, in about four weeks. Adult-onset diabetes is a disease of high blood sugar that afflicts millions of Americans and can lead to kidney damage, blindness, heart disease and other complications. While diet and exercise can control blood sugar levels in these people, most eventually will need insulin, a hormone that helps the muscles convert blood sugar into energy.