Dr. Bill Garrett, who removed bone spurs from Easley's leftshoulder during surgery at UNC Hospitals, also discovered that thegovernor's rotator cuff was 90 percent torn, so he repaired thatinjury as well.
The bone spurs were caused by extensive use of the shoulder duringphysical activity over several years, Garrett said at a newsconference.
The surgery went well, and Easley is in good spirits, saidGarrett, chair of the Department of Orthopaedics at UNC MedicalSchool. The governor returned to Raleigh and began doing some work,he said.
Easley will wear a sling for the next three to four weeks andwill have to forego strenuous activity until the summer, the doctorsaid.
The surgery was expected to last about two hours, during whichtime the governor was to be awake with the affected area numbedwith an anesthetic.
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