Nebraska governor’s prognosis is good after falling from a horse

Nebraska Gov. Jim Pillen was in intensive care at an Omaha hospital Monday after undergoing a medical procedure to treat an injured spleen suffered when he was bucked off a horse.

The governor was in stable condition, with doctors saying his prognosis was positive despite seven rib fractures, a minor fracture in one of his vertebrae and a minor kidney injury that’s expected to heal on its own. Pillen was slated to leave intensive care sometime later Monday, though he was expected to remain at the University of Nebraska Medical Center for at least another day.

Pillen, 68, underwent a minimally invasive procedure called a prophylactic embolization for the spleen injury. Doctors passed a wire into the arteries near the spleen and placed coils there to stop the bleeding, said Dr. Hillman Terzian, an acute care surgeon and medical director for emergency general surgery at UNMC.

Pillen did well during the procedure and has been stable the whole time, Terzian said. The governor was sedated for the procedure, which took less than an hour.

The governor didn’t suffer any damage to his nervous system and there were no signs of a head injury or injury to his spinal canal, Terzian said. He has been motivated to get out of bed and has already been walking laps, “which is very impressive,” Terzian said.

Being in intensive care is normal for people with a spleen injury similar to Pillen’s and with rib fractures at his age, Terzian said.

He gave the governor “a very good prognosis.”

“We don’t expect anyone with his injuries to be up and running a marathon the next day, but we like them to be out of bed, to show us that they can pick up small objects, that sort of thing,” Terzian said.

Pain control is his doctors’ biggest focus right now, Dr. Charity Evans said. No other operations are planned, though physicians have options for treating his ribs, Terzian said.

Pillen was elected governor in 2022. His office previously said he was out horseback riding with family members when he was bucked off a new horse and injured Sunday.

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Dura reported from Fargo, North Dakota.