Pope Francis Hospitalized with Complex Clinical Picture
Pope Francis, who has been hospitalized since Friday in Rome for bronchitis, presents a “complex clinical picture,” the Vatican announced on Monday. This implies that the hospitalization of the 88-year-old pontiff will be prolonged. The Vatican’s medical bulletin reported that the results of recent exams showed a polymicrobial infection of the respiratory tract, which led to a new modification of therapy.
The Holy See added that all tests carried out so far indicate a complex clinical picture that will require adequate hospitalization. As a result, the Wednesday audience of the Argentine Pontiff was canceled. Despite this, a source close to the Pope assured AFP on Monday that there was no “reason for alarm” after his admission to the Gemelli hospital in Rome.
While the Medical Bulletin was published, the director of the Vatican Press Office, Matteo Bruni, said the Pope was “in a good mood.” Bruni had earlier indicated that the pontiff “slept well, spent a quiet night, and had breakfast” while dedicating himself to reading some newspapers. Before his hospitalization on Friday, Francisco had shown signs of weakness, with his face swollen and breathless, and had to delegate several tasks to his assistants.
According to a source from the Jesuit environment, the Pope’s overloaded agenda over the past two weeks had left him “weakened.” On Sunday, the Pope followed Mass on television but was unable to pronounce his traditional prayer of the Angelus from the balcony of St. Peter’s Square in Rome. The Vatican communicated in the afternoon that his clinical status was “stable.”
Despite his hospitalization, Francisco has maintained his daily phone calls to the parish of Gaza from his hospital room, according to Italian media. The Pope’s hospitalization, the fourth in less than four years, has relaunched doubts about his fragile health, especially since 2025 is a jubilee year for the Catholic Church, which implies a long list of events, many of them chaired by the Pope.
In recent months, the Pope has experienced several health issues, including a fall in his residence in mid-January, which left him with his arm in a sling, and a bruise on his chin after hitting his knee against a table in December. Despite these health problems, including hip and knee pains that force him to use a wheelchair, the Pope has kept his loaded agenda and declared that he had no intention of slowing down his rhythm.