By Charis Ebiaghian
The Vatican reports that Pope Francis was in critical condition on Saturday, February 22nd 2023. This is after he suffered a long asthmatic respiratory crisis that required high flows of oxygen.
The 88-year-old Francis has been hospitalized for a week with a complex lung infection. He has also received blood transfusions after tests showed a condition associated with anaemia, the Vatican said in a late update.
“The Holy Father continues to be alert and spent the day in an armchair although in more pain than yesterday. At the moment the prognosis is reserved,” the statement said.
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Earlier, doctors said that Francis was battling pneumonia and a complex respiratory infection that doctors say remains touch-and-go and will keep him hospitalized for at least another week.
The Vatican carried on with its Holy Year celebrations without the pope on Saturday.
A brief earlier update on Saturday reveals that Pope Francis slept well overnight.
But doctors have warned that the main threat facing Francis would be the onset of sepsis. Sepsis is 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 the pope’s condition.
“He is not out of danger,” said his physician, Dr. Luigi Carbone.
“So like all fragile patients, I say they are always on the golden scale: In other words, it takes very little to become unbalanced.”
Francis, who has chronic lung disease, was admitted to Gemelli Hospital on February 14. This was after a weeklong bout of bronchitis worsened.
