Kirk upgraded, watches football

Sen. Mark Kirk has been upgraded to good condition and was able to watch the Super Bowl last night with family, according to Dr. Richard Fessler, who operated on Kirk following a stroke last month.

Fessler anticipated that Kirk, who is at Northwestern Memorial Hospital, will be able to start rehabilitation soon.

“We are very pleased with his continued improvement,” Fessler said in an email.

The 52-year-old first-term Republican U.S Senator suffered a stroke last month and underwent surgery at Northwestern that removed part of his skull to relieve pressure caused by swelling on the right side of his brain, Fessler said earlier.

Doctors have given Kirk, a relatively encouraging prognosis, even as he has undergone multiple surgeries to minimize damage from brain swelling that followed the stroke.

Doctors say they expect the senator to regain his mental faculties, but he could suffer some lasting paralysis on the left side of his body.

His recovery, they say, likely will be a long one.