Castro 'opted for risky surgery'

Mr Castro is said to have chosen a procedure with quicker recovery time

Cuban leader Fidel Castro's health worsened after he chose risky surgery leading to grave complications, a new report by a Spanish newspaper has said.

El Pais quoted medical sources as saying Mr Castro rejected a procedure which would have forced him to carry a temporary bag for bodily wastes.

On Tuesday, the paper said that Mr Castro's prognosis was "very serious".

Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez denied this, but said his close ally's recovery would be slow and had risks.

A Spanish surgeon who travelled to Cuba last month to examine Mr Castro also said the report was "without foundation".

Mr Castro has not been seen in public since undergoing surgery in July.

The authorities in Havana have said Mr Castro's health is a state secret, but have rejected speculation that he is suffering from cancer or a terminal illness.

Complications

The Cuban leader is said to be suffering from diverticulitis, a condition in which bulges in the walls of the intestine become inflamed and sometimes infected.

FAILED OPERATIONS Part of intestine removed - colon connected to rectum Cleaning and draining of infected area Prosthesis implanted Source: El Pais Diverticulitis Peritonitis

In articles on Tuesday and Wednesday, El Pais quoted unnamed sources at the Gregorio Maranon hospital in Madrid, where Jose Luis Garcia Sabrido, who examined Mr Castro in December, is head of surgery.

In its Wednesday edition, El Pais quoted the anonymous sources as saying the veteran Cuban leader had personally refused an ileostomy - which would require using a temporary bag for removing bodily wastes - on the grounds that the recovery period from the procedure was slow.

He decided to have the colon stitched to the rectum instead, but it did not heal properly, they added.

Other problems followed including peritonitis - or inflammation of the abdominal cavity - and he was forced to undergo at least two further operations.

But Mr Garcia Sabrido himself said on Tuesday that any reports that did not come from Mr Castro's medical team should be ignored.

'Not cancer'

According to Tuesday's publication, the sources said that when Mr Garcia Sabrido visited the president, he had an abdominal wound which was releasing more than half a litre of fluids a day, causing a serious loss of nutrients.

The Cuban leader was being fed intravenously, El Pais reported.

Mr Chavez, who spoke to Mr Castro by telephone earlier this month, also said his ally was not "in a serious condition as some say, nor does he have cancer".

In December, Mr Castro missed a massive military parade in Havana marking 50 years since his return from exile.

In his New Year message, he said he was recovering slowly from the surgery, but said it would be a "long process".