Jimmy Carter recovers from brain surgery in Atlanta

Former President Jimmy Carter is recovering from surgery Tuesday morning to relieve pressure on his brain caused by a subdural hematoma, the Carter Center said in a statement.

“There are no complications from the surgery,” according to the Carter Center. Mr. Carter is expected to remain at Emory University Hospital in Atlanta “as long as advisable for observation.”

He had been hospitalized Monday night. The pressure on his brain was caused by bleeding from his recent falls, the Carter Center said.

CBS News medical contributor Dr. David Agus said that the procedure is normally a quick one. “Basically, they’re just drilling a small hole in the brain and draining the fluid that is causing the pressure,” Agus told CBSN. “So the procedure itself — you could be in the operating room, say, an hour.”

Mr. Carter, who is 95 years old, took a fall in October that left him with a black eye and 14 stitches — but he nevertheless attended the opening ceremony for a Habitat for Humanity build in Nashville along with Rosalynn, who is 92. Less than two weeks after his second fall, he said he planned to return to teaching Sunday school.

In the Sunday school service that followed, Mr. Carter told attendees he’s “at ease with death.”

This spring, Mr. Carter surpassed George H.W. Bush as the oldest U.S. president in history.