Muhammad Ali back in hospital for ‘follow-up care’

LOUISVILLE, Kentucky — Muhammad Ali was back in the hospital Thursday for follow-up care related to a severe urinary tract infection, his second stint in the hospital in the last four weeks.

The three-time former heavyweight boxing champion was admitted to an undisclosed hospital earlier this week, Ali family spokesman Bob Gunnell said Thursday. Ali was in stable condition.

Ali was hospitalized on Dec. 20 with what was initially believed to be a mild case of pneumonia. Doctors later determined Ali had a urinary tract infection, not pneumonia, Gunnell said.

“There were still issues with the urinary tract infection,” he said of the latest hospitalization.

Ali was expected to be released Friday.

Ali turns 73 on Saturday and hopes to spend it at one of his homes with family, Gunnell said.

Ali’s public appearances have diminished in recent years as he wages a long-running fight against Parkinson’s disease.

Ali retired from boxing in 1981 and devoted himself to social causes. He has traveled the world on humanitarian missions, mingling with the masses and with world leaders.

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