Pope Francis rested during a peaceful night following respiratory crisis and blood transfusion
Feb 22, 2025, 11:31 PM | Updated: Feb 23, 2025, 7:14 pm
Candles are seen near pictures of Pope Francis outside the Agostino Gemelli Polyclinic in Rome, Sunday, Feb. 23, 2025, where the Pontiff is hospitalized since Feb. 14. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
Credit: ASSOCIATED PRESS
(AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
ROME (AP) 鈥� Pope Francis rested during a peaceful night following a respiratory crisis and blood transfusions, the Vatican said Sunday.
Vatican spokesman Matteo Bruni’s one-line statement didn’t mention if Francis was up or eating breakfast.
The brief update came after doctors said the 88-year-old pope, who had part of one lung removed as a young man, was in critical condition. On Saturday morning, he suffered a prolonged asthmatic respiratory crisis while being treated for pneumonia and a complex lung infection.
The pope received 鈥渉igh flows鈥� of oxygen to help him breathe. He also received blood transfusions after tests showed low counts of platelets, which are needed for clotting, the Vatican said in a late update.
The Saturday statement also said that the pontiff 鈥渃ontinues to be alert and spent the day in an armchair although in more pain than yesterday.鈥� Doctors said the prognosis was 鈥渞eserved.鈥�
Doctors have said Francis鈥� condition is touch-and-go, given his age, fragility and pre-existing lung disease, and that the main threat facing him is if the infection enters the bloodstream, a serious condition known as sepsis.
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