NEW YORK, Sept 9 (AFP) - Former US president Bill Clinton was taking short walks in his hospital corridor Thursday as he continued his recovery from open heart surgery.
"He's in good spirits and has been able to take short walks in the hallway outside his room," Clinton's office said in a statement.
Clinton, who was given a quadruple bypass at New York Presbyterian Hospital on Monday, was moved from the intensive care unit on Wednesday afternoon.
He is expected to remain in hospital until early next week.
Clinton, 58, was admitted to hospital last Friday complaining of chest pains and shortness of breath.
Several of the former president's main blood vessels were found to have a blockage of more than 90 percent, and doctors said the surgery had come just in time to ward off a major heart attack.
Full recuperation should take several months, possibly sidelining Clinton for the remainder of the US presidential campaign in which he had planned to stump extensively for Democratic challenger John Kerry.
Thursday's statement voiced the appreciation of Clinton's family for the tens of thousands of get-well messages sent to the former president.