Pope Francis spent a “peaceful” night and was rested, said the Vatican, after revealing on Saturday that his state continues to be “critical”.
The pontiff was described as “sicker” than on Friday and he received blood transfusions because he suffers from a “prolonged breathing crisis of asthma”.
The 88 -year -old man is treated for pneumonia in the two lungs of the Gemelli Hospital in Rome.
Blood transfusions were deemed necessary due to a small number of plates, associated with anemia, said the Vatican.
He said that the Roman Catholic chief was alert and in his chair, but needed a “high flow” of oxygen and his prognosis “remains kept”.
“The state of the Holy Father remains critical,” he said in a statement. “The pope is not out of danger.”
He added: “The Holy Father continues to be alert and spent the day in an armchair even if he suffered more than yesterday.”
The Pope asked for the opening on his health, so the Vatican began to publish daily statements. The tone and length of the announcements have varied, sometimes leaving the pope-watchers trying to read between the lines.
But it is by far the most standard evaluation to date and it is unusually detailed. He refuses to give a prognosis.
It comes one day after the doctors dealing with the Pope said for the first time that he responded to the drugs, although they were clear that his condition was complex. They said on Friday that the slightest change in circumstance would upset what was called a “delicate balance”.
“He is the pope”, as one of them said. “But he is also a man.”
The Pope was admitted for the first time to the hospital on February 14 after having had difficulty breathing for several days.
It is particularly subject to pulmonary infections due to the development of pleurisy – inflammation around the lungs – as an adult and having part of one of its lungs removed at 21 years.
During his 12 years as head of the Roman Catholic Church, Argentinian was hospitalized several times, especially in March 2023 when he spent three nights in the hospital with bronchitis.
The latest news will worry Catholics around the world, which closely follow news from the state of the Pope.
It is a year of the charged jubilee for the Catholic church with a large number of visitors expected in Rome and a major calendar of events for the Pope.
It is not known to be inactive. Even in the hospital, his doctors say he went to pray in the chapel this week and had read on his chair.
But even before the last setback, the Vatican had declared that he would not appear in public to direct prayer with pilgrims on Sunday, which means that the event would miss for the second consecutive week.
Sympathizers left candles, flowers and letters for the Pope outside the Gemelli Hospital in Rome all week. There was no change outside the Basilica of St Peter at the Vatican on Saturday evening, however, without gathering of crowds.
But the people who cross the place said they were following the news.
“We feel very close to the Pope, here in Rome,” an Italian told the BBC. “We saw the last and we are worried.”
