First Lady Laura Bush resting after neck surgery

The procedure, a posterior cervical foraminotomy, was performed to relieve pressure near the spine on pinched nerves in her neck. The operation was successful, said press secretary Sally McDonough of the Office of the First Lady.

She returned later Saturday to the White House, the presidential residence, where she was "resting comfortably," McDonough said.

The surgery took two and a half hours at nearby George Washington University Hospital.

Afterward, the first lady spoke by telephone with her husband, US President George W Bush, who was flying home to Washington aboard Air Force One from the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in Sydney.

Deutsche Presse-Agentur