LOS ANGELES — Rock star Bret Michaels is in critical condition after suffering a brain hemorrhage, People magazine is reporting.
The 47-year-old musician was rushed to an undisclosed hospital overnight with an excruciating headache, which doctors diagnosed as a massive subarachnoid hemorrhage (bleeding at the base of his brain stem), a source close to the situation told the mag.
"After several CAT scans, MRIs and an angiogram, [doctors] decided to keep Michaels in the ICU and are running several tests to determine the cause. [It] will be touch and go for the next few days while he is under intense observation," the source said.
It is the latest setback for Michaels, who is a diabetic. Earlier this month, he underwent an emergency appendectomy in San Antonio after he fell ill just before he was about to take the stage for a concert at SeaWorld. Michaels recently admitted he was lucky to be alive after believing he was simply suffering from the flu.
"About 10 minutes before show time doctors got on the bus and said, 'Bret we really don't think this is the flu' and told me that I WAS GOING TO THE HOSPITAL. After a CAT scan, they determined it was acute appendicitis and they performed emergency surgery right there in the middle of the night," he wrote last Saturday on his Fancast blog. "After the fact, they told me that if I had gone onstage like I wanted to, it likely would have ruptured and I could have died. Not good."
"As I write this, I'm feeling pretty bad…to tell you the truth," he added. "When you're not planning on having a body part ripped out of you, it can be a shock to the system. While the doctors are amazing in San Antonio, there is just no way around the fact that getting your appendix out HURTS. I have a pretty good threshold for pain, but this one hurts."
Michaels also said he wasn't sure how much longer he would remain under medical supervision after the surgery.
"I've spoken to several doctors and they all seem to be impressed with the condition I have been able to keep myself in as a juvenile diabetic," he said. "But a lot of extra care needs to be taken to make sure my body heals correctly. It's no secret I love my kids, my life, and being on the road, so I want to make sure I do everything I can now to make sure I can continue that later. They say it can take four to six weeks to recover, but maybe longer for a diabetic."
Michaels rose to fame in the '80s as the frontman of glam-rock band Poison. He has since become a popular reality television figure. In addition to starring on VH1's Rock of Love, he currently appears on the latest round of NBC's Celebrity Apprentice.
American Superstar sends its thoughts and prayers to Bret Michaels for a speedy recovery.
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