It was meant to be just a quick procedure, but during surgery for a breast lift in Los Angeles last Friday, Star Jones Reynolds suffered a medical scare that landed her in the hospital for four nights, PEOPLE reports in its upcoming issue.
During the procedure, Jones Reynolds's hemoglobin levels – the proteins found in red blood cells that are responsible for distributing oxygen in the body – dropped drastically, a condition that likely stemmed from her history of anemia, say friends. She was immediately transported to St. John's Health Center in Santa Monica and given a blood transfusion.
While it's unlikely that Jones Reynolds's life was in imminent danger, her hemoglobin did drop to "levels low enough to worry about," says a source.
Released from the hospital on Tuesday, Jones Reynolds, 44, bounced back quickly. “I just spoke to Star and she was eating Skittles and driving down Wilshire Boulevard,” The View spokesperson Karl Nilsson, told PEOPLE.
In fact, she’ll likely be back to work on Monday. "The (lift) was successful, and she said she was looking forward to coming back next week," said Barbara Walters, who spoke to her View colleague while she was in the hospital.
Her recovery might have gone even more smoothly with her man by her side, but, by an odd coincidence, husband Al Reynolds had a medical emergency of his own. Trying to get in a workout before flying out from New York (where they both live) to see his wife the day of her surgery, Reynolds, 35, fell at his gym and required stitches on two cuts.
While at the hospital, doctors also found that he was dehydrated. They suggested he not fly and kept him overnight to administer fluids. Reynolds did get to talk to his wife on the phone that night; they spoke from respective hospital beds.
So why did Jones Reynolds have the procedure done in the first place? She declined to comment, but "when you lose a significant amount of weight," says a source close to Jones Reynolds, referring to her recent 150-lb. loss, "things aren't in the same place they once were."
Still, according to her rep Brad Zeifman, it turned out all right in the end. "She is recovering wonderfully," he said.
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