Pope had good tenth night in hospital – Holy See Press Office
Pope Francis slept well on his tenth night at Rome’s Gemelli Hospital, where he is being treated for double pneumonia, according to the Holy See Press Office.
Pope Francis had a restful tenth night in the hospital, according to a statement published on Monday morning by the Holy See Press Office.
“The night went well; the Pope slept and is resting,” read the statement.
The Pope is receiving treatment for double pneumonia at Rome’s Gemelli Hospital.
On Sunday evening, the Holy See Press Office said his condition remains critical, though he has not experienced any respiratory crises since Saturday morning.
Pope Francis had received blood transfusions to bring up his hemoglobin levels.
“The thrombocytopenia remains stable; however, some blood tests show early, mild renal insufficiency, which is currently under control,” said the Sunday press statement, adding that “High-flow oxygen therapy continues through nasal cannulas.”
Earlier on Sunday, the Pope attended Mass in his apartment in Gemelli Hospital with the doctors and nurses who are overseeing his treatment.
Pope Francis had received blood transfusions to bring up his hemoglobin levels.
“The thrombocytopenia remains stable; however, some blood tests show early, mild renal insufficiency, which is currently under control,” said the Sunday press statement, adding that “High-flow oxygen therapy continues through nasal cannulas.”
Earlier on Sunday, the Pope attended Mass in his apartment in Gemelli Hospital with the doctors and nurses who are overseeing his treatment.
The leader of the Catholic Church, who has chronic lung disease and is prone to respiratory illness in winter, was admitted to Rome’s Gemelli Hospital on 14 February after a weeklong bout of bronchitis worsened.
Pope Francis is conscious and still receiving high flows of supplemental oxygen following a respiratory crisis and blood transfusions as he remains in critical condition with a complex lung infection, the Vatican has said.
“The night passed quietly, the pope rested,” Vatican spokesman Matteo Bruni said in a statement.
Further clinical tests were being performed on the 88-year-old pontiff who had part of one lung removed as a young man.
On Saturday, Pope Francis suffered a prolonged asthmatic respiratory crisis that required “high flows” of oxygen to help him breathe through a nasal tube.
He also received blood transfusions after tests showed low counts of platelets, which are needed for clotting, the Vatican said.
Doctors said that his prognosis was “reserved.”
Doctors have said Pope Francis’ condition is touch-and-go, given his age, fragility and pre-existing lung disease.
His condition has revived speculation about what might happen if he becomes unconscious or otherwise incapacitated and whether he might resign.
Francis was supposed to have celebrated Mass on Sunday morning in St. Peter’s Basilica and ordained deacons as part of the Vatican’s yearlong Holy Year commemoration.
The organiser of the Holy Year, Archbishop Rino Fisichella, celebrated the Mass in his place and offered a special prayer for the Pope from the altar before delivering the homily the pope had prepared.
“Even though he is in a hospital bed, we feel Pope Francis close to us, we feel him present among us,” Fisichella told the hundreds of assembled deacons.
A pre-written message that Pope Francis had prepared for his Sunday noon prayer said he was “confidently continuing my hospitalisation at the Gemelli Hospital, carrying on with the necessary treatment; and rest is also part of the therapy!”
His message also noted the upcoming third anniversary of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, calling it “a painful and shameful occasion for the whole of humanity.”
The threat of sepsis
Doctors have warned that the main threat facing Pope Francis is the onset of sepsis, a serious infection of the blood that can occur as a complication of pneumonia.
As of Friday, there was no evidence of any sepsis and Francis was responding to the various drugs he is taking, the pope’s medical team said in their first in-depth update on his condition.
Blood tests carried out on Saturday showed that he had developed a low platelet count, a condition called platelopenia or thrombocytopenia.
Platelets are cell-like fragments that circulate in the blood that help form blood clots to stop bleeding or help wounds heal.
Credit AP Photo
Low platelet counts can be caused by a number of things, including side effects from medicines or infections, according to the US National Institutes of Health.
Pope Francis, who has chronic lung disease and is prone to bronchitis in winter, was admitted to Gemelli hospital on 14 February after a weeklong bout of bronchitis worsened.
Doctors first diagnosed a complex viral, bacterial and fungal respiratory tract infection and then the onset of pneumonia in both lungs.
They prescribed “absolute rest” and a combination of cortisone and antibiotics, along with supplemental oxygen when he needed.
Comments
Post a Comment