Sen. Kirk has stroke, undergoes surgery CHICAGO, Jan. 23 (UPI) -- Sen. Mark Kirk, R-Ill., had surgery Monday to relieve swelling around his brain stem caused by a stroke, the senator's office said. "The surgery was successful," the statement posted on Kirk's Web site said. Due to his young age, good health and the nature of the stroke, doctors are very confident in the senator's recovery over the weeks ahead. Kirk, 52, checked himself into a hospital in Illinois, where doctors discovered a carotid artery dissection on the right side of his neck, the statement said. Further testing indicated he had an ischemic stroke, which occurs because of an obstruction within a blood vessel supplying blood to the brain. Kirk was elected to the Senate in 2010, winning the seat that had been held by Barack Obama before he was elected president in 2008.