Catholic Church
Vatican: Pope does not have pneumonia
Pope Francis will be 87 years old in December. photo
© Andrew Medichini/AP/dpa
After canceling appointments, the Vatican announced that the Pope does not have pneumonia, but is struggling with breathing difficulties.
After confusion about the health status of The Vatican has ruled out pneumonia for Pope Francis, citing a medical examination.
However, a computer tomography (CT) scan at the hospital detected a problem of inflammation in the lungs that was causing the head of the Catholic Church to have difficulty breathing, Holy See spokesman Matteo Bruni said. However, the Vatican left open what exactly this meant.
At the weekend, Francis had to cancel appointments because of his illness. On Sunday, the 86-year-old did not hold the traditional Angelus prayer from the window of the Apostolic Palace, as usual, but from his residence in the Vatican. A priest read large parts of the speech. Francis himself said the prayer and the blessing. The Pope appeared exhausted and was coughing.
“The Pope’s condition is good and stable”
The Vatican initially announced on Saturday that the Pope had a “mild flu”, but Francis himself then spoke on Sunday of a “problem of inflammation in the lungs”.
“The pope’s condition is good and stable, he has no fever and the condition of his breathing is improving significantly,” the Vatican said. He also confirmed that the pontiff had been given a cannula for an intravenous antibiotic infusion. Some of Francis’ appointments have now been postponed to give him time and energy to recover.
Francis will be 87 years old in December. His health has been bothering him for some time. He has already been treated in a clinic twice this year. First because of pneumonia; He later had to undergo open abdominal surgery under general anesthesia.