Former President Kim Dae-jung put on respirator but stable: hospital

SEOUL, July 16 (Yonhap) -- Former President Kim Dae-jung was put on a respirator
due to irregular breathing but is not in a critical condition, hospital officials
said Thursday.
"He became short of breath on Wednesday night and was put on a respirator around
3 a.m. this morning," an official at Yonsei Severance Hospital said. "His
condition has improved since. He is conscious, and his pulse, breathing and body
temperature are normal."
Kim, who served as president between 1998 and 2003, was hospitalized on Monday
and transferred to the intensive care unit after being diagnosed with pneumonia.
Kim was hospitalized once before in 2005 after showing symptoms of a cold and a
fever.
The 85-year-old former president, a life-long opposition leader, received the
Nobel Peace Prize in 2000 after holding the first-ever inter-Korean summit that
year.
brk@yna.co.kr
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