VIENNA, Austria - The eldest daughter of a woman imprisoned in a cellar by her father for more than 20 years has been brought out of a medically induced coma.
A hospital official says 19-year-old Kerstin Fritzl was awakened from the induced coma several days ago an has since been able to leave the hospital's intensive care unit.
Kerstin Fritzl is one of seven children whom authorities say Josef Fritzl has confessed to fathering with his captive daughter.
She was taken to hospital in April, unconscious and suffering from an unidentified infection.
That led to the police investigation that uncovered the basement dungeon where her mother a some of her siblings were held.
In addition to the induced coma, she was placed on a respirator and underwent dialysis because of the effects of lack of oxygen.
"The patient continues to need intensive medical ... and therapeutic care," said a hospital statement, e-mailed by hospital spokesman Klaus Schwertner.
It gave no time frame for further treatment and offered no details about the patient's location.
Fritzl is accused of raping his daughter repeatedly while confining her to a basement hideaway for 24 years.
Kerstin's hospitalization led to the unravelling of the elaborate crime when doctors appealed on TV for her mother to come forward because they needed information about the young woman's medical history.
Fritzl then accompanied his daughter, 42-year-old Elisabeth, to the hospital on April 26 and her story came to light shortly after.
On Friday, authorities decided to extend pretrial custody for Fritzl, 73, by another two months. Fritzl was formally placed in custody April 29 and will likely be charged when the investigation is complete.
Three of the children fathered by Fritzl, including Kerstin, were raised in a cellar at his home in Amstetten, west of Vienna. Three others were brought above ground to live with Fritzl and his wife, and one died in infancy. DNA tests confirmed Fritzl is the biological father of the six surviving children.
