Former Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi has been released from hospital after fainting at a weekend political rally.
Former Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi is assisted by aides after collapsing during a speech
The 70-year-old centre-right leader collapsed on Sunday while delivering a speech. He recovered consciousness a few minutes later but the health scare has prompted speculation about the opposition leader's political future.
Doctors identified an irregular heart beat but said there was no reason for concern and on Tuesday gave him a clean bill of health after three days of medical tests. Berlusconi has said he will address a political demonstration in Rome on Saturday.
A hospital source said Berlusconi had left Milan's San Raffaele hospital by a back door shortly after midday, to avoid the crowd of journalists waiting for him at the main entrance. The source did not give more details.
Alberto Zangrillo, the doctor who treated Berlusconi at San Raffaele, said the politician had turned his room there into an office.
But he said Berlusconi, who sleeps only three or four hours a night, needed to slow down. Newspapers said it was likely that Berlusconi would have to undergo more medical tests next week.
"His body is like a Ferrari but he is driving it at a crazy speed. He must be careful, otherwise he risks skidding and going off the road," Zangrillo said in an interview with La Repubblicanewspaper.