Hillary Clinton, battling pneumonia, cancels California campaign trip

Hillary Clinton, battling pneumonia, leaves her daughter&#039;s apartment — (Image credit: CNN/YouTube)

On Sunday morning, Hillary Clinton quietly and abruptly left a ceremony in Lower Manhattan to mark the 15th anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attacks, and headed to the nearby apartment of daughter Chelsea. A video later emerged showing Clinton stumbling while entering a van from the ceremony, and a few hours later, her personal physician, Dr. Lisa Bardack, said in a statement that Clinton had been diagnosed with pneumonia Friday, is taking antibiotics and had been advised to rest and curtail her schedule, and became dehydrated and overheated at the 9/11 ceremony. "I have just examined her and she is now rehydrated and recovering nicely," Bardack wrote.

Clinton was also filmed walking out of Chelsea's apartment on her own at around noon, smiling and waving and telling a reporter that she felt much better. After she returned home to Chappaqua, Clinton canceled a two-day campaign trip to California scheduled for Monday and Tuesday. The Clinton campaign had not disclosed her pneumonia diagnosis until Bardack's statement.

Several doctors contacted by The Associated Press said that Clinton should recover in a few days if she rests, drinks fluids, and takes her antibiotics. They were also not surprised at the infection. "Candidates are constantly out in enclosed spaces, face to face with myriads of people," said Dr. William Schaffer at Vanderbilt University. "It's an ideal opportunity for the transmission of a respiratory virus." In the CNN report below, Dr. Sanjay Gupta says that there's not enough information to offer a prognosis on Clinton's recovery, but did note the dangers of dehydration with pneumonia, saying her stumble getting into the van on Sunday morning was consistent with Bardack's description of Clinton's health. Peter Weber

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Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.