In an interview published May 2, 2024, Bret Baier told Entertainment Tonight that his 16-year-old son, Paul, had undergone a fifth open-heart surgery after imaging revealed an aneurysm near his heart. Baier said Paul was home and recovering when the interview was published. That is a dated recovery update, not confirmation of Paul’s health today.
What happened before the May 2024 surgery?
Entertainment Tonight reported that imaging in late April 2024 revealed an aneurysm near Paul’s heart. The family was told surgery was needed quickly, and Baier said the operation took place the following morning. ET described it as Paul’s fifth open-heart surgery. The medical details here are the family’s account as reported by ET; the coverage does not provide medical records or a more specific diagnosis.
At the time the story was published on May 2, Baier told ET: “He’s doing really well. He’s on the mend.” He also said Paul was home, in good spirits, and meeting the milestones his doctors and nurses expected. Those comments describe his condition at publication, not his present status.
How Paul’s earlier heart surgeries fit into the timeline
Fox News reported in 2014 that Paul was born in 2007 with five congenital heart defects, diagnosed the day after his birth. The article recounted three open-heart surgeries during his early childhood. It quoted Dr. Richard Jonas, then identified as chief of cardiac surgery at Children’s National Heart Institute, describing the complexity of the initial repair: “You have to switch around the main arteries, close off the holes in the heart, repair the aorta, so join the two ends of the interrupted aorta together.”
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Axios reported in January 2021 that Paul had undergone a fourth open-heart surgery in December 2020 and was recovering. The ET report in May 2024 described the next operation as his fifth.
| When | What the coverage reported |
|---|---|
| 2007 and early childhood | Fox News’s 2014 account said Paul was born with five congenital heart defects and had three open-heart surgeries in early childhood. |
| December 2020 / January 2021 | Axios reported Paul’s fourth open-heart surgery and recovery. |
| Late April / May 2, 2024 | Entertainment Tonight reported that imaging found an aneurysm near his heart, followed by a fifth open-heart surgery the next morning; Baier said Paul was home recovering when the story ran. |
What the reports do—and do not—establish
The accounts document one family’s experience and should not be read as general medical guidance. They do not establish Paul’s current health, his long-term prognosis, or how other congenital heart conditions or aneurysms are treated. The 2014 Fox News story also identified Baier’s memoir, Special Heart: A Journey of Faith, Hope, Courage and Love, written with Jim Mills; that is an optional account of the family’s story, not medical advice.
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