Vice President Dick Cheney will visit George Washington University Hospital on Wednesday after doctors discovered a recurrence of an abnormal heart rhythm, his spokeswoman said in a written statement.

Doctors discovered Wednesday that Cheney was "experiencing a recurrence of atrial fibrillation, an abnormal rhythm involving the upper chambers of the heart," Megan Mitchell said.

He will undergo an outpatient procedure to restore his normal rhythm, she said.

Cheney canceled a Wednesday campaign event in Illinois for Marty Ozinga, a Republican nominee for a U.S. congressional seat.

The 67-year-old vice president has a history of heart ailments, including four heart attacks dating to 1978. He was briefly hospitalized in January 2006 after suffering shortness of breath.

Cheney also experienced an abnormal rhythm in the upper chambers of his heart November 26. His normal heart rhythm was restored through a procedure called cardioversion, which uses an electrical impulse.

At the time, Cheney complained of a lingering cough from a cold.

He was back to work the next day.