The Vatican has issued a new concerning update on Pope Francis amid ongoing health battles. Pope Francis has received a blood transfusion and is “suffering more…
The Vatican has issued a new concerning update on Pope Francis amid ongoing health battles.Pope Francis has received a blood transfusion and is “suffering more than yesterday,” the Vatican confirmed on Saturday (February 22), as concerns over the 88-year-old pontiff’s health continue to grow.
The Pope has now spent over a week at Rome’s Gemelli Hospital, where he is being treated for double pneumonia and chronic bronchitis.His condition remains critical, with Vatican officials revealing that he suffered a prolonged asthmatic respiratory crisis on Saturday morning.
“The condition of the Holy Father continues to be critical. Therefore, as explained yesterday, the Pope is not out of danger. This morning, Pope Francis experienced an asthma-like respiratory crisis of prolonged intensity, which required the administration of high-flow oxygen,” the update read.
Medical tests also detected thrombocytopenia, a condition associated with anemia, which led doctors to perform a blood transfusion.
Doctors Warn He Is “Not Out of Danger”
During a press briefing on Friday, Sergio Alfieri, the head of the Pope’s medical team, confirmed that while Pope Francis is not at immediate risk of death, he is still not out of danger.
“Is he out of danger? No. But if the question is ‘is he in danger of death,’ the answer is ‘no’,” Alfieri stated, Sky News.Doctors said the Pope is battling a complex infection involving multiple bacteria and viruses in his respiratory tract. While they emphasized that he does not have sepsis, they warned that the infection could still spread—a major concern given his fragile health.
Sepsis, a severe complication of an infection, can lead to organ failure and death, making close monitoring essential.
Pope Francis has a history of respiratory illness, having lost part of one of his lungs to pleurisy as a young man. He also suffered from acute pneumonia in 2023.