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- Pope Francis was hospitalized with a lung infection after recently experiencing breathing difficulties and will be hospitalized for several days of treatment.
- It immediately raised questions about Francis’ overall health and his ability to celebrate the busy Holy Week events scheduled to begin this weekend on Palm Sunday.
Pope Francis kisses a child during his weekly general audience in St. Peter’s Square in the Vatican on March 29, 2023.
Guglielmo Mangipane | Photo Reuters
The Vatican said Pope Francis was hospitalized on Wednesday with a lung infection and has been experiencing breathing difficulties in recent days and will remain in the hospital for several days for treatment, the Vatican said.
The 86-year-old pope does not have Covid-19, spokesman Matteo Bruni said in a statement late Wednesday.
The hospitalization was Frances’ first since spending 10 days in Gemelli in July 2021 to have a 33-centimeter (13-inch) colon removed.
It immediately raised questions about Francis’ overall health and his ability to celebrate the busy Holy Week events scheduled to begin this weekend on Palm Sunday.
Bruni said Francis has been having trouble breathing for the past few days and has gone to Gemelli Hospital for tests.
“Tests have shown a respiratory infection (excluding Covid-19 infection) that requires treatment for several days,” Bruni said in a statement.
Francis appeared in relatively good shape during his regular public audience scheduled for early Wednesday, but grimaced strongly as he stepped into and out of the “popemobile.”
Francis had part of one lung removed due to a respiratory infection when he was younger, and he often speaks in a whisper. But he has survived the worst stages of the COVID-19 pandemic with at least no public word that he has tested positive.
Francis was scheduled to celebrate Palm Sunday, which kicks off the Vatican’s Holy Week rituals, this weekend. Holy Thursday, Good Friday, Easter Vigil and finally he is Easter Sunday on April 9th. whether he can keep to his plans for Holy Week.
Francis has been using a wheelchair for over a year due to ligament strain in his right knee and a small fracture in his knee.
Francis also said he resisted surgery for a knee problem because he didn’t respond well to general anesthesia during bowel surgery in 2021.
He said he made a full recovery and was able to eat normally soon after the operation. However, in a Jan. 24 interview with the Associated Press, Francis said his diverticulosis, or bulging intestinal wall, had “returned.”
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