Pope spent peaceful night in hospital after respiratory crisis

‘The condition of the Holy Father continues to be critical,’ said a statement from the Holy See Press Office on Saturday, ‘therefore, as explained yesterday, the Pope is not out of danger.’

Pope Francis rested in the Gemelli Hospital overnight following a report he was in a critical condition on Saturday morning.

A Vatican statement on Sunday morning said the night had “passed peacefully”. The previous evening’s report said the Pope had suffered an “asthma-like respiratory crisis” for a prolonged time, requiring a “high flow” of supplementary oxygen. Tests also found he had thrombocytopenia, a coagulation disorder common in intensive care patients, requiring blood transfusions.

“The condition of the Holy Father continues to be critical,” said a statement from the Holy See Press Office on Saturday evening, “therefore, as explained yesterday, the Pope is not out of danger.”

In a briefing at the Gemelli Hospital on Friday evening, the head of the Pope’s medical team Dr Sergio Alfieri said the Pope had faced a “critical condition” on admission to the hospital suffering bronchitis a week earlier. He said he was “fine” but not “out of danger”.

Saturday’s statement said he remained “alert and spent the day in an armchair, though he is more unwell than yesterday”. It said his prognosis was “reserved”, meaning his medical situation was unpredictable and subject to monitoring.

The Pope was diagnosed with double pneumonia on Monday, requiring strengthened drug therapy besides his treatment for bronchitis, according to his personal doctor from the Vatican health service Dr Luigi Carbone at the Friday briefing. 

Alfieri said his main fear for Francis was the onset of sepsis from the infection in his lungs. He voiced confidence that he would return to the Vatican, but said he would remain in hospital for “at least a week”.

Earlier on Saturday, the Vatican confirmed the Pope would not lead the Angelus on Sunday, instead publishing his text for the occasion at noon. A statement in the morning said he had “slept well” on Friday night.

The Vatican’s Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin criticised “unfounded speculation” about the Pope’s health, which was the subject of widespread comment over the past week even as Catholic groups and Church leaders around the world offered prayers for his recovery.

“Right now, our focus is on the Holy Father’s health, his recovery, and his return to the Vatican – these are the only things that matter,” Parolin told the Italian daily Corriere della Sera in an interview published on Saturday.

The cardinal said he expected “unverified rumours” to circulate in such a situation but had not heard them. He was available to visit the Pope in hospital if necessary, he said, but “there has been no need”.

On Friday, the Vatican issued a statement refuting a television report that Parolin and the Jesuit Cardinal Gianfranco Ghirlanda had visited Pope Francis at the Gemelli.

Pope Francis ‘not out of danger’ say doctors

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