WASHINGTON — Sen. Bernie Sanders was released from the hospital Friday evening after doctors say he had a heart attack earlier in the week.

The 2020 presidential hopeful felt chest discomfort during a campaign event in Las Vegas Tuesday. He had a blockage in one artery and two stents were inserted, his campaign said earlier this week.

Sanders' treating physicians Arturo E. Marchand Jr and Arun Guraraj released a statement via the campaign Friday saying that Sanders was “diagnosed with a myocardial infarction” at another facility before being transferred to Desert Springs Hospital Medical Center. A myocardial infarction is the medical term for a heart attack.

“After two and a half days in the hospital, I feel great, and after taking a short time off, I look forward to getting back to work,” Sanders, 78, said in a statement Friday.

The doctors said Sanders’ “hospital course was uneventful with good expected progress.”

The Vermont Senator will participate in the upcoming Democratic primary debate, his campaign confirmed to USA TODAY Thursday. He had previously cancelled planned campaign events, as well as a planned television ad buy in Iowa.

Sanders, who ran for president in 2016, has been consistently among the top three Democratic contenders. He currently stands in third place in national polling, according to a Real Clear Politics' averaging of major polls.

Contributing: Aamer Madhani