Bono Undergoes Emergency Back Surgery

BERLIN — The manager of U2 says that frontman Bono has undergone emergency back surgery in a Munich hospital after he was injured while preparing for the group's tour.

The 50 year old, whose real name is Paul Hewson, is under the care of neurosurgeon Dr. Joerg Tonn and Dr. Hans-Wilhelm Mueller-Wohlfahrt, according to a statement on U2's website.

Mueller-Wohlfahrt could not be reached for comment.

Band manager Paul McGuinness, in an MP3 posted on the website, said Friday that because of the injury, the band's "360-Degree" June 3 show in Salt Lake City, Utah, has been postponed. It was not immediately clear if other dates also were canceled.

McGuinness says, "We hope to get things resolved as soon as possible."

___

Online:

http://www.u2.com

Comments

[cherylrn66]

08:39 PM on 05/24/2010

I KNEW there was something about him, besides his voice, that i couldn't stand! Now it all make sense!

[Waiting4Hope]

09:04 PM on 05/23/2010

The Irish rock band U2 grossed more than $100 million in the first 13 shows of its 360 Degrees tour, and once donated $50,000. to the ONE foundation.
Bono or Paul David Hewson is known around the world as the greatest international humanitarian and the President of Africa.

[NYCforObama]

12:31 PM on 05/24/2010

He's known in Ireland as a fraud, tax evader, and hypocrite.

In England, he's better known for his philandering and botched plastic surgeries.

In the US, he puts his arm around Dubya and is considered saintly.

[RJB Boston]

09:35 PM on 05/24/2010

not sure what US you are speaking for....

[Ish and Em]

06:53 PM on 05/23/2010

Best Wishes Bono!

[castleoninfinity]

04:45 PM on 05/23/2010

Hope he is doing well! And may the weight be lifted off of his back! He has lifted the weight off the back of so many people worldwide, both through his charity and his music.

[Dana Ullman]

03:00 PM on 05/23/2010

Dr. Hans-Wilhelm Mueller-Wohlfahrt is a well-known homeopathic specialist who is best known for treating many sports superstars. My book, "The Homeopathic Revolution," documents the stories of hundreds of the most famous people over the past 200 years who used and advocated for homeopathy (including many physicians, scientists, Presidents, popes, monarchs, literary greats, and musicians). It is NO surprise that Bono picked him...no surprise at all...

[Sheldon101]

01:32 AM on 05/24/2010

This is one time you do not want to toot the homeopathy is great horn. The last thing Bono needed was being seen by a homeopath. He needed to be seen by a real doctor.

I read Dr. Han's wikipedia page. He may be a homeopath, but the treatments he is known for aren't homeopathic. Whether what he does works or not, there is some substance in what he uses.

At least one doctor agrees with my own guess - Cauda Equina Syndrome. According to the doctor it is the only true back emergency. It is one that needs surgery as soon as possible. And even prompt surgery does not guarantee a full recovery.

It is one case where even conventional doctors may not make a proper diagnosis quickly --- let alone anyone with alternative views because the only remedy is surgery as soon as possible to take the pressure off the spinal nerves. Nothing else will help.

continued....

[Sheldon101]

01:33 AM on 05/24/2010

Continued...

Most likely he was seen by Dr. Hans first. My one concern is whether being seen by Dr. Hans caused a delay in Bono getting the diagnosis of a condition that needed surgery immediately. Because almost all the time, injuries to the back are not emergencies, no matter how painful they may be.

How well he recovers and if he even recovers fully depends on a lot of factors such as the severity of the damage to the spinal nerves and the length of time there was damage or pressure on the spinal nerves. I would not be surprised if it takes him months to recover fully, if he ever does.

I would not be surprised to later learn that Dr. Hans gets sued by Bono if he didn't make the proper diagnosis or the proper referral soon enough.

As I said, a perfect example of where being seen by a homeopath has the potential for causing very serious damage to a patient because it can delay a proper diagnosis.

http://u2.interference.com/f304/bono-undergoes-emer-surgery-tour-impact-forthcoming-206153-42.html

[SAJP]

12:46 AM on 05/23/2010

Get well soon brother!

[MountainDweller]

12:13 AM on 05/23/2010

Get well soon Bono.

[Cooday]

04:34 PM on 05/22/2010

Everything is going to be alright Bono Ok. Rest up and we all look forward to you returning with your great team U2!

[zest]

02:30 PM on 05/22/2010

Feel better Bono.

[JEP57]

12:03 PM on 05/22/2010

Check out this video of Bono and the boys from 1978. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qe6VtCRTvsU

[Elliott McClelland]

10:48 AM on 05/22/2010

People have been disparaging Bono for being wealthy. (I thought that was the conservative ideal, actually, but I digress.) Well, I feel I have a very personal stake in Bono’s wealth. I have purchased every U2 album from Boy to No Line, I have seen them in concert 3 times, and I have spent money on various U2 memorabilia (books, t-shirts, DVDs, etc.). All-in-all I have personally added to Bono’s wealth, and because he has so richly impacted my life, I like that he lives a very luxurious, even extravagant, lifestyle. I feel he deserves it.

The financial distance between Bono and me is no greater than the distance between myself and the world’s poor Bono works so hard to help. It’s like measuring light years. What’s really the difference between 100 light years and 1,000 light years? Both are still pretty far away if you don’t have a spaceship. For those suggesting that Bono give up his wealth, I ask, “Are you ready to give up your wealth?”. You have 2 cars? You have 2 bathrooms? You have more than 1 pair of shoes? To the world’s poor what’s the difference between 10 pairs of shoes and 100 pairs of shoes? Both are still pretty far out of reach when you have to walk barefoot.

I think some radical liberal once said, "If any one of you is without sin, let him be the first to throw a stone.”

[schatsie]

09:31 AM on 05/23/2010

Scuse me, because I pay income taxes, state income taxes and property taxes and social security taxes....and healthcare taxes WHAT TAXES does Bono pay because he sure does not pay INCOME TAXES.

[jmink]

10:14 AM on 05/23/2010

I agree that it is greed that guides a man who gets all of his wealth from adoring fans to not pay taxes and help support the country he lives in.

[klbrz]

06:17 PM on 05/23/2010

He pays taxes. Lots of taxes, everywhere the band tours and sells records. There is one little part of the band's business that was moved from Ireland to the Netherlands because of tax issues. Nothing illegal, nothing evasive. http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/music/article5814498.ece

[Waiting4Hope]

05:59 PM on 05/23/2010

Your wrong, no-one is disparaging Bono for being wealthy.
We are calling him a hypocrite for going after others to pay their fair share, when he doesn't pay his fair share. We NEVER hear his giving any of his own money or even giving a benefit concert where all the money goes to charity.
If anything, by him being in the public eye for Africa, he actually makes more money for himself and his bad. And then he even prevents his own country for getting the fair share of the taxes he makes on the money.
If he is not going to give Ireland the tax money, at least give the same amount to Africa.

[klbrz]

06:56 PM on 05/23/2010

He participates in charitable concerts (for many, many years), has started charitable foundations. If he announced to the world every time he donated money or time to a cause, everyone would complain that he was full of himself and hate him for that. I have a feeling he's not going to be able to make you happy.
http://www.looktothestars.org/celebrity/26-bono
http://www.forbes.com/2006/05/04/cx_me_0505featslide.html?thisSpeed=35000

[zenwhenicanbe2]

10:20 AM on 05/22/2010

My guess would be a herniated disc. That will produce blinding pain if it is severe enough.

[WhatDreams]

09:17 AM on 05/22/2010

Bono has done so much to alleviate suffering and bring justice to the most un-empowered people in the world.
My prayers are with him now. And Bono, as soon as you can start the physical therapy and do the exercises faithfully. That hasten his recover AND keep his pain level way down.
My thoughts are with you sir.

[SeagirlX]

09:01 AM on 05/22/2010

Heal up and feel better soon, Bono!

[simplystunned]

06:29 AM on 05/22/2010

Get better soon Bono. One of my favorite entertainers and a real humanitarian.