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Japanese prince raises health concerns for Empress Michiko, as thoughts turn to the throne’s future

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Japan's Emperor Akihito and Empress Michiko greet guests at the annual autumn garden party at the Akasaka Palace imperial garden in Tokyo on November 12. Both are aged 81 and have reduced their official duties in recent years. Photo: Reuters

Comments by Prince Akishino, second-in-line to Japan’s Chrysanthemum Throne, have suggested that Empress Michiko is increasingly experiencing poor health.

Coupled with Emperor Akihito’s advancing years, the admission is raising questions about the sort of figurehead Akishino’s brother, Crown Prince Naruhito, will become.

In a press conference to mark his 50th birthday on Monday, Prince Akishino expressed concern about the well-being of his mother, who has been diagnosed with a heart complaint exacerbated by stress.

“I believe her stress is partly due to the illness of the emperor,” the prince said.
A photo released by Japan’s Imperial Household Agency to mark Prince Akishino’s (left) 50th birthday shows him with his wife Princess Kiko (right) and their children, Princess Mako (second left), Princess Kako and Prince Hisahito at their residence in Tokyo. Photo: Reuters
A photo released by Japan’s Imperial Household Agency to mark Prince Akishino’s (left) 50th birthday shows him with his wife Princess Kiko (right) and their children, Princess Mako (second left), Princess Kako and Prince Hisahito at their residence in Tokyo. Photo: Reuters

Emperor Akihito has twice been hospitalised for surgery. He underwent an operation for prostate cancer in 2003, followed by heart bypass surgery in 2012.

The emperor made a slower-than-anticipated recovery from the second procedure, the prince said, which caused the empress anxiety and stress. Empress Michiko was diagnosed this summer with myocardial ischemia, or reduced blood-flow to the heart, a condition made worse by stress.

Both the emperor and empress are 81 years old and they have substantially reduced their duties in recent years.

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