Bill Clinton hospitalized in New York

Former US President Bill Clinton underwent a successful heart procedure on Thursday to open blocked arteries in his heart with two stents after he had experienced chest discomfort, his spokesman said.

Clinton, 63, had quadruple heart bypass surgery in 2004 to free up four blocked arteries and the latest incident comes after he has traveled back and forth to Haiti to help recovery efforts after a devastating earthquake there.

"Today President Bill Clinton was admitted to the Columbia Campus of New York Presbyterian Hospital after feeling discomfort in his chest," Douglas Band, counselor to Clinton, said in a statement.

"Following a visit to his cardiologist, he underwent a procedure to place two stents in one of his coronary arteries. President Clinton is in good spirits, and will continue to focus on the work of his Foundation and Haiti's relief and long-term recovery efforts," Band said.

Love of burgers, junk food

Clinton was president from 1993 until 2001 and like many Americans, he struggled with his weight.

He presided over eight years of economic prosperity and political tumult during a presidency tarnished by a sex-and-perjury scandal that led to his impeachment and a bitter fight to stay in office.

While in office he was known for his love of burgers and junk food and was also seen regularly jogging to try and keep himself in trim.

Having stents placed in heart arteries is a relatively routine procedure among patients like Clinton who have suffered from heart disease.

Following his 2004 heart operation he has looked trim and fitter than while he was president. He established a foundation to build his legacy beyond his White House years which has pushed big corporations and rich people to take action to try to fix some of the world's worst problems.

Most recently Clinton has been heading a US relief effort after the Jan. 12 earthquake in Haiti. His wife, Hillary Clinton, is the current US secretary of state under President Barack Obama.

A senior administration official said Hillary Clinton had left Washington for New York. The official declined to say if there would be any changes to Clinton's planned trip to Qatar and Saudi Arabia, which was due to start on Friday.