Pope’s Top Aide Has Spleen Removed

NEW YORK — Cardinal Agostino Casaroli, the Vatican secretary of state, was in satisfactory condition today after undergoing emergency surgery to remove his spleen, officials said.

Casaroli, 70, second only to the Pope at the Vatican, injured his spleen in a fall Wednesday and underwent surgery Thursday night at Cabrini Medical Center, said hospital spokeswoman Geraldine Travali.

Casaroli’s spleen was removed because of internal bleeding, but the injury was not life-threatening, she said. He was expected to leave the hospital in a week to 10 days, said a spokeswoman at the Vatican’s permanent observer mission to the United Nations.

Casaroli fell on the stairs of the mission’s chapel. The cardinal arrived in New York on Oct. 18 to join in celebrations marking the United Nation’s 40th anniversary session.