Don Ho to be released from hospital soon

updated 10:57 p.m. ET Sept. 21, 2006

HONOLULU - Don Ho expects to be released from the hospital by the weekend after having a new pacemaker installed.

Ho, known for his signature tune “Tiny Bubbles,” has been in the hospital since Sept. 13. The pacemaker was installed Saturday.

“The new pacemaker has two wires instead of one, one going into each chamber of my heart,” Ho told the Honolulu Star-Bulletin. “They also put in a kind of balloon deal to keep my heart pumping while they did the operation.”

In December, the 76-year-old underwent a new heart treatment in Thailand that hasn’t been approved in the United States. The procedure involved taking multiplying stem cells from his blood and injecting them into his heart in hopes of strengthening it.

There was no indication when Ho would resume his twice-a-week shows at the Ohana Waikiki Beachcomber hotel in Waikiki.

Ho said he’s considering additional stem-cell treatment if necessary, but that would require traveling internationally.

Ho has entertained tourists for more than four decades and hosted the “The Don Ho Show” on ABC in 1976-77.

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