Catholic Pope Francis is in critical condition after suffering a long asthmatic crisis that required high flows of oxygen, the Vatican has said.
“The Holy Father’s condition remains critical. The Pope is not out of danger.
“The Holy Father continues to be alert and spent the day in an armchair even if he was suffering more than yesterday. At the moment the prognosis is reserved,” the statement said.
On Friday, the doctors said Francis was not out of danger and that the main threat facing him would be the onset of sepsis, a serious infection of blood that can occur as a complication of pneumonia.
Head of Medicine and Surgery at Rome’s Gemelli Hospital, Dr Sergio Afieri, said on Friday that “Sepsis, with the respiratory problem and his age, would be really difficult to get out of. The English say ‘knock on wood,’ we say ‘touch iron.’ Everyone touches what they want. But this is the real risk in these cases: that these germs pass to the bloodstream.”
Francis, 88, has been in hospital at the Agostino Gemelli Polyclinic since February 14 for treatment of bronchitis, which has impacted on his ability to speak.
In a statement then, the Vatican said the pope was admitted to the hospital “for necessary diagnostic tests and to continue hospital treatment for his ongoing bronchitis.”
CNN had reported that prior to his admission, Francis met his morning audiences at the Vatican but “was mentally alert but struggling to speak for extended periods due to breathing difficulties.”
The Catholic head has suffered from health complications in recent years. He had surgeries twice in 2021 and 2023 just as he has longstanding knee problems that make him use a wheelchair. In 2023, he spent three nights in hospital.
Francis, who has been head of Roman Catholic for 12 years, has, however, downplayed his battle with health, blaming it on his old age.
“The reality is, quite simply, that I am old,” he said in his autobiography last month.