Pope Francis has pneumonia in both lungs
Pope Francis has developed pneumonia in both lungs, according to new tests, the Vatican said on Tuesday. FOX 5 NY’s Sharon Crowley reports.
The Vatican reports that Pope Francis is in critical condition after experiencing a prolonged asthmatic respiratory crisis Saturday morning according to the Vatican.
“The Holy Father continues to be alert and spent the day in an armchair although in more pain than yesterday. At the moment the prognosis is reserved,” the statement said.
This is a breaking news story. Check back for updates.
Pope Francis leads a prayer and reflection for peace In Lebanon in St. Peter’s Basilica at the Conclusion of the Ecumenical day of Prayer for Lebanon on July 1, 2021, in Vatican City, Vatican. (Photo by Vatican Pool/Getty Images)
As of Friday, his medical team reported that while his complex respiratory infection was not considered life-threatening, he was not out of danger.
They warned that the main threat facing Francis was onset of sepsis, a serious infection of the blood that can occur as a complication of pneumonia.
The 88-year-old had completed his first week in the hospital, battling pneumonia in both lungs, along with bacterial, viral, and fungal infections on top of his chronic bronchitis.
Francis was admitted to Gemelli hospital on Feb. 14 after a weeklong bout of bronchitis worsened. Doctors first diagnosed the complex respiratory infection and then the onset of pneumonia in both lungs on top of chronic bronchitis. They prescribed “absolute rest.”
His personal physician, Dr. Luigi Carbone, said Friday, “Like all fragile patients I say they are always on the golden scale: In other words, it takes very little to become unbalanced.”
Carbone, who along with Francis’ personal nurse Massimiliano Strappetti organized care for him at the Vatican, said that Francis had insisted on staying at the Vatican to work, even after he was sick.
This weekend, Francis was supposed to have celebrated deacons, a ministry in the church that precedes ordination to the priesthood.
Doctors have said Francis’ recovery will take time and that, regardless, he will still have to live with his chronic respiratory problems back at the Vatican.
