The 88-year-old pope received high flows of oxygen and blood transfusions in hospital as he battles a complex lung infection.
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The Vatican says Pope Francis was in critical condition on Saturday after he suffered a prolonged asthmatic respiratory crisis while being treated for pneumonia and a complex lung infection, the Vatican says.
In a statement, they said the pontiff’s “is not out of danger” as his condition continues to deteriorate. It’s the first time “critical” had been used in a written statement to describe Francis’ condition since his hospitalisation on 14 February.
“Pope Francis experienced an asthma-like respiratory crisis of prolonged intensity, which required the administration of high-flow oxygen,” said the Holy See in a statement.
The statement also said the 88-year-old Argentinian pope continues to be alert and is spending most of his days in an armchair. They added that that he was experiencing more pain than on Friday.
Francis also required the administration of blood transfusions after his blood tests revealed thrombocytopenia, a condition associated with anaemia.
Doctors warn of potentially worsening condition
Doctors treating Francis at Gemelli Hospital in the Italian capital, Rome, have warned that his condition may continue to deteriorate. They say the main threat facing the pontiff would be the onset of sepsis, a serious infection of the blood that can occur as a complication of pneumonia.
Doctors who’ve been monitoring his blood tests say that so far there was no evidence indicating the presence of sepsis. The pope’s medical team noted in their first in-depth update on Francis’ condition that he was responding to the various drugs he’s been prescribed.
Saturday’s blood tests showed that he had developed thrombocytopenia, a condition of low platelet count in the blood. Low platelet counts can be caused by a number of things, including side effects from medication or infections, according to the US National Institutes of Health.
Francis who has chronic lung disease was admitted to hospital after a weeklong bout of bronchitis worsened. Doctors first diagnosed the complex viral, bacterial and fungal respiratory tract infection and then tested for pneumonia in both lungs.
He was prescribed “absolute rest”, in addition to a combination of cortisone, various antibiotics, along with supplemental oxygen when needed.
Doctors treating Francis say if he develops sepsis, it can lead to organ failure, or potentially even death.
“Sepsis, with his respiratory problems and his age, would be really difficult to get out of,” says Dr. Sergio Alfieri, Head of Medicine and Surgery at Gemelli Hospital.
“The English say ‘knock on wood,’ we say ‘touch iron.’ Everyone touch what they want, But this is the real risk in these cases: that these germs pass to the bloodstream.”
“He knows he’s in danger” Alfieri noted, “And he told us to convey that.”
The Vatican says he remains in good spirits, eats breakfast every day, and has continued to work from his hospital room.
Francis became the Pope of the Roman Catholic Church in March 2013, and is the first pope from the Americas.