Family of Malaysian ex-leader Mahathir says broken hip serious but not life-threatening
KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia (AP) — Malaysia’s centenarian former Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad was recovering in a hospital Wednesday from a broken right hip that his daughter said was serious but not life-threatening.
Mahathir was rushed to the National Heart Institute on Tuesday after he suffered a fall at his home. His office said he would remain hospitalized for the next few weeks for observation and treatment.
“It’s a hip fracture and we have to wait for it to heal which, due to his age, will take time,” his daughter Marina Mahathir told The Associated Press on Wednesday. “Otherwise he’s as ok as anyone with a hip fracture can be.”
She dismissed rumors that her father is dying.
“It’s serious in anyone, more so a 100-year-old but it’s not life-threatening,” she said.
The centenarian fell while doing his normal morning exercise of brisk walking, according to Mahathir’s son, Mukhriz, who added that doctors ruled out surgery due to his age and therefore his recovery may take longer.
Mahathir served as prime minister from 1981 to 2003 and again from 2018 to 2020, becoming the world’s oldest head of government during his second term. Despite stepping away from frontline politics, he continues to comment publicly on political developments.
The fall adds to a series of health scares in recent years for the former leader, who has has been hospitalized several times for other conditions that were not critical.
Mahathir has a history of heart disease including two bypass surgeries, the first in 1989 after a heart attack and then a quadruple bypass in 2007. He turned 100 in July and said staying mentally and physically active kept him going.
“So long as I can function, I want to function. I want to behave almost as if I am not getting old. I try to live the same life that I lived when I was younger,” he said at the time.