Michael Lohan undergoing heart surgery

Michael Lohan is undergoing heart surgery.

The showbiz patriarch - who is the father of troubled actress Lindsay Lohan - was taken into hospital after complaining of chest pains last month, and is now set to have an operation in the hope of unclogging an important artery.

Michael's representative told TMZ: "He is undergoing a procedure to repair a blockage."

Once the 51-year-old star's condition is stable, it is thought he will return to his court-ordered treatment facility, where he is participating in an anger-management intervention scheme after pleading no contest to four domestic violence charges against former fiancee Kate Major.

In addition to the classes, Michael - who was arrested following an altercation with Kate on October 25 - will spend four months working at the Teen Challenge International scheme, and his lawyer hopes he will "benefit" from the sentence.

He said: "I believe he was pleased with the result, he should be. It was a good result and it will benefit him."

This is not the first time Michael has suffered heart problems.

In February, he was rushed to hospital for emergency surgery on a blocked artery after he was found to have dangerously high blood pressure during a check by a nurse at his local doctor's office.