Condition of Lee Kuan Yew deteriorates further

File photo of Singapore's former Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew taken on March 20, 2013. The country's Prime Minister's Office said on Wednesday that Lee remains critically ill in the ICU and has deteriorated further. [Photo/Xinhua]

SINGAPORE - Singapore's former Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew remains critically ill in the ICU and has deteriorated further, said the Prime Minister's Office (PMO) on Wednesday.

This is the seventh statement on Lee Kuan Yew's condition within a month. Singapore's PMO said the condition of PM Lee has worsen on Tuesday.

The PMO first announced PM Lee Kuan Yew was in hospital because of sever pneumonia in a statement on Feb. 21, and updated on Feb. 26 saying that he was still warded.

A statement on Feb. 28 said Lee's condition had improved slightly, and he was continuing with his antibiotics. The statement noted he remained sedated and on mechanical ventilation at the intensive care unit in Singapore General Hospital.

The PMO released statements on March 6 and on March 13 respectively, saying Lee Kuan Yew's condition remained largely unchanged, and he continued to be watched closely by his doctors.