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American Morning
Bob Hope in Hospital for Pneumonia
Aired August 30, 2001 - 09:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
DARYN KAGAN, CNN ANCHOR: We're going to start with an update on the condition of an entertainment giant. Bob Hope is being treated at a California hospital for pneumonia.
As our Lauren Hunter reports, doctors say the legendary comedian and actor is getting better.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DR. LEE KAGAN, PROVIDENCE ST. JOSEPH ME. CTR.: He's responding well to therapy. His condition has improved and he is stable at this time.
LAUREN HUNTER, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): that's the diagnosis from doctors of 98-year-old legendary comedian and entertainer bob hope.
He was brought to st. Joseph Medical Center in Burbank Sunday night by his wife Dolores and daughter Linda after experiencing breathing difficulties.
KAGAN: He had a terrific morning on Sunday, had eaten well, and there was no sign of any problems until approximately 9:00 in the evening, and it did begin suddenly with difficulties with his breathing.
HUNTER: Doctors said Hope was in serious condition with pneumonia, and began a regimen of antibiotics and breathing treatments.
KAGAN: He is in much-improved condition and stable. I would say he is not serious at this time.
HUNTER: It was just over a year ago that a bout with gastrointestinal bleeding put the comedian in a Palm Springs hospital for a week, a condition his doctors said was not unusual for someone his age.
St. Joseph Medical Center, where Mr. Hope is currently undergoing treatment, is just down the road from NBC, his network home for decades.
ANNOUNCER: From the Hollywood Canteen, the "Pepsodent Show," starring Bob Hope. HUNTER: He first joined the Peacock family in 1938 as host of the "Pepsodent Show" on NBC radio, but he is best-known for his overseas tours for the USO.
His last visit to U.S. troops was in 1991 in Saudi Arabia. Doctors say the entertainer's family remains at his side in the hospital, and say Mr. Hope could return home in a few days.
Lauren Hunter, CNN. Los Angeles.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LEON HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: Well, pneumonia can be a very serious condition, especially for someone Bob Hope's age.
As you can see now, joining us for more information and insight is our medical news correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta.
All right, let's get right to it. How does age factor into this?
SANJAY GUPTA, CNN MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Right. Exactly, it's to say what might be a mild infection in you or me, Leon, could be a very serious infection in someone like Bob Hope. The specifics are that when you get older a few changes take place in your body.
One is that it's harder for you to fight infections. Your immune systems don't work as well.
Your heart may not work as well, and as you know, your heart pumps blood from your lungs to the rest of your body. So, fluid might actually build up in your lungs. That can be a place where infection can start.
Finally, you may not cough as well. You don't have enough strength in your upper chest and stuff like that. I always tell my parents, in addition to working out the lower body, make sure to work out the upper body as well so you don't run into that problem.
HARRIS: That's good advice there. OK, so then -- now taking the age factor into account here; does the treatment here change because of his age?
GUPTA: Not necessarily. You still need to treat the infection of the pneumonia. That's usually treated with antibiotics, as Dr. Kagan had mentioned, they're giving now. Also with oxygen, to make sure that he's getting enough oxygen.
Because of his age he might -- and sometimes people need to be put on breathing machines. That could be because of the fact that they just can't breathe well enough on their own.
HARRIS: We've been talking earlier this week about this longevity gene story, I get that there may be one.
What do you make of Bob Hope's situation here? The fact that this guy's still plugging right along at 98? GUPTA: It really is remarkable. What I remember learning from medical school, Lean, that there's three big killers: There's heart disease, there's cancer and there's trauma. If none of those three get you by the time you're in your 60s or 70s, there's a good chance you're going to live to be into your 80s or 90s. As we see with Bob Hope, 98 years old, apparently didn't have any of those three -- he did have problems with gastrointestinal bleeding at some point a couple of years ago.
But you know, this guy was doing troops in the Gulf War just -- not 10 years ago.
HARRIS: Exactly. Maybe that's part of it too, working long into his life as well. He's on the road for a long time.
GUPTA: Exactly.
HARRIS: Maybe that helped out as well. Sanjay Gupta, thank you much.
GUPTA: Thank you, man.
HARRIS: Appreciate it.
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