Chicago police chief discloses he needs kidney transplant
Chicago Police Superintendent Eddie Johnson disclosed after a public dizzy spell on Friday that he has battled a kidney condition for more than three decades and is on a waiting list for a transplant.
Johnson said his dizziness at a news conference announcing a crime initiative was due to taking blood pressure medication on an empty stomach. He was taken to a suburban Chicago hospital for several hours of evaluation and later released.
“For 32 years I’ve been treating a kidney condition that hasn’t interfered with my ability to lead a normal life or be your police superintendent,” he said at a news conference later in the day. “I don’t require dialysis nor do I have diabetes.”
Johnson said that once a donor is found and the operation takes place he should be back to work after three to five weeks. Johnson said that he informed Emanuel of his kidney condition before he was appointed superintendent in March.