Jan. 16 (Bloomberg) — The condition of former Indonesian
President Suharto remained critical as doctors said they will
try to take the 86-year-old off his respirator to reduce the
risk of a blood infection spreading.
“We plan to remove the ventilator gradually so the patient
is encouraged to breathe by himself, Mardjo Soebiandono, head
of Suhartos medical team, said at a media briefing at Pertamina
Hospital in south Jakarta today. “We also want to prevent any
chance that infection will increase.
Doctors are concerned the tubes inserted into Suhartos
throat to help him breathe may increase the risk of infection.
The infection is leading toward sepsis, or systematic
inflammatory response syndrome, which occurs when the body
mounts a strong immune response to bacteria or other toxins and
ends up damaging its own organs.
Suharto is “fully conscious but weak, and is responding
to verbal commands, Soebiandono said today.
The condition of Indonesias second leader has been
fluctuating since admission to the hospital 13 days ago and he
was put on respiratory support on Jan. 11 after some vital
organs stopped functioning.
Suharto, who ruled Southeast Asias biggest nation for 32
years, was forced to resign after student-led protests in May
1998, following the Asian financial crisis that caused a slump
in the countrys economy.
The former president had corruption charges against him
dropped in 2006 on health grounds. He is fighting civil cases
for alleged misappropriation of funds. The government on Jan. 12
proposed an out-of-court settlement to the civil lawsuits, an
offer Suhartos family rejected.
The former leader is alleged to have taken as much as $35
billion, averaging 1.3 percent a year of Indonesias gross
domestic product, according to the United Nations Office on
Drugs and Crime. Suhartos lawyer Mohammad Assegaf has said the
UN report is “nonsense.
To contact the reporters on this story:
Woro Widya Utami in Jakarta at
