Queen Sonja to undergo surgery as Norway palace shares health update
Queen Sonja is set to undergo surgery after her hospitalisation last weekend.
The Norwegian Queen Consort, 87, will be fitted with a pacemaker on Thursday, the palace confirmed in a statement.
She will be admitted to Rikshospitalet in Oslo on Wednesday evening ahead of the procedure and is then expected to remain in the hospital for one or two days.
It comes after Queen Sonja was briefly admitted to Lillehammer Hospital last Saturday, after experiencing an episode linked to her existing heart condition, atrial fibrillation, while on a ski trip.
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The surgery takes place the day before her husband, King Harald, 87, marks his 34th year on the throne on 17 January.
Queen Sonja has largely enjoyed good health, keeping up her love for hiking well into her ninth decade.
According to NHS recommendations, patients should avoid strenuous activities for around four to six weeks after the pacemaker is fitted. After this, people are able to do most activities and sports.
It heeds caution about avoiding collisions in contact sports such as football or rugby, and avoiding very energetic activities, such as squash.
In comparison, King Harald has experienced ill-health in recent years, having had his own pacemaker fitted last March, after falling ill with an infection on a private holiday in Malaysia.
He was hospitalised for infections twice and treated for a fever in 2023 – three years after also having an operation to replace a health valve.
In 2003, Harald also underwent surgery for bladder cancer.
Queen Sonja was last seen publicly on 9 January as she received representatives from the MiRa Center at the palace.
Meanwhile, King Harald attended the award ceremony for the Sønsteby Prize on 10 January.
The couple, who wed in 1968, share two children – Crown Prince Haakon, 51, who is the heir to the Norwegian throne, and Princess Märtha Louise, 53.
