KUALA LUMPUR, April 12 — Winter of K-pop girl group Aespa will be taking a hiatus while recovering from a surgery to prevent a collapsed lung.
Aespa’s label SM Entertainment confirmed in a statement that the 23-year-old underwent surgery as a preventative measure following ‘plenty of discussion’, Soompi reported.
“Winter recently underwent surgery for pneumothorax and is currently recovering,” SM said.
“As (pneumothorax) is a condition prone to recurrence, (the surgery) was carried out as a preventive measure in accordance with her doctor’s opinion, and the decision was made after plenty of discussion.”
Pneumothorax is an accumulation of air outside the lung that can create pressure against the lung and cause it to collapse if left untreated.
SM said that they will be prioritising Winter’s recovery moving forward with her future activities, likely suggesting that she will be taking a hiatus.
Winter was last seen celebrating fellow member Karina’s birthday yesterday in a special video on YouTube alongside other members Giselle and Ningning.
Online K-pop fans were saddened by the news and wished Winter a smooth and speedy recovery.
“I hope she takes it easy and takes all the time she needs, their health will always be the most important thing,” X user @jiminiesneck wrote.
“Even if all of Aespa’s schedules have to be halted for the entire rest of the year just for Winter to recover properly and fully, so be it,” user @pradarinabluu posted.
“This isn’t just an idol simply being tired or having a cold or flu, it’s surgery and Winter needs to be treated as delicately as possible.”
This comes after Aespa announced more dates for their upcoming 2024 world tour Synk: Parallel Line which will hold stopovers in Taiwan, Australia, Thailand and Singapore.
