Pope Francis has shown “further slight improvement” in his battle with double pneumonia and earlier concerns over possible kidney failure have been resolved. Source: NCR Online.
According to a Vatican statement released at 6.30pm local time (4.30am AEDT), blood tests on the 88-year-old Pope also show continued improvement.
This medical bulletin marks the first time since February 22 that the pontiff’s condition has not been described as “critical,” although the Vatican statement noted that his overall prognosis “remains guarded.”
Yesterday’s medical bulletin noted that on Tuesday, the Pope underwent a CAT scan on his chest – the third of his 13-day hospitalisation – and that the pontiff’s medical team said the results revealed a “normal evolution” for an individual being treated for double pneumonia.
While the pontiff continues to receive occasional supplemental oxygen, the Vatican said he has not experienced any further asthmatic attacks since last weekend and he is continuing respiratory physiotherapy.
Today will mark two weeks since Francis entered the hospital for respiratory difficulties that developed into double pneumonia.
Vatican sources say that despite his condition, the Pope continues to eat normally and is moving around the papal suite on the 10th floor of Rome’s Gemelli Hospital and continues to engage in work activities.
On Tuesday, the Vatican announced that the Pope had signed decrees related to the canonisation of new saints during a February 24 hospital visit by Francis’ top two deputies.
The Vatican statement also said that the Pope has decided to convene a consistory, a Vatican administrative meeting, to discuss the upcoming canonisations. Such an announcement – from the hospital – set off a fury of speculation, given that it was during a similar meeting in 2013 that Pope Benedict XVI announced his shock resignation.
Cardinal Marcello Semeraro, the prefect of the Dicastery for the Causes of the Saints, sought to tamp down on such rumours in an interview with the Italian daily Corriere della Sera.
“At least someone will be convinced that he is not dying,” Cardinal Semeraro said of the Pope’s decision to advance the sainthood causes.
“It is a sign of hope.”
FULL STORY
Pope Francis’ condition upgraded slightly, no longer ‘critical’ (By Christopher White, NCR Online)
