Pope Francis is "in good condition" and routine checks are good after the operation he underwent on Wednesday due to an abdominal hernia at the Gemelli hospital in Rome, the Vatican said Thursday. The intervention was described as a success by the doctor who carried it out and the Holy See considers that now it is only a matter of the Pontiff keeping the necessary rest until full recovery arrives. Doctors point out that the hospital admission could last at least a week. For now, Francis has his agenda for the next ten days clear.
The Vatican press office published a brief statement after seven o'clock in the afternoon, in which it confirmed the positive evolution of the patient. "His Holiness Pope Francis has spent a day of rest. The medical team that follows the postoperative progress of the Pontiff reports that he has been fed a liquid diet. Hemodynamic and respiratory parameters are stable. Postoperative progress is normal."
In addition, the Holy See has reported that on Thursday afternoon, when the Solemnity of Corpus Domini or Corpus Christi was celebrated, the Pope received the Eucharist. "Among the many messages of support, he was moved by the affection of the family of little Michelangelo, baptized by Pope Francis on March 31 during the visit to the departments of pediatric oncology and children's neurosurgery of the hospital [where he is now admitted], who sent him a poster wishing him a speedy recovery. The Holy Father wanted to personally thank the mother with a brief phone call."
The news had already been positive during the morning, when it was reported that the medical staff following the recovery process of Francis had reported that the night had passed "in a quiet way", and that the patient "had managed to rest for a long time". "He is in good condition, awake and breathing spontaneously," read a morning note from Vatican spokesman Matteo Bruni, who celebrated that the pontiff no longer needed assisted breathing.
The doctor who has operated on him, Sergio Alfieri, in an appearance before the media at the Gemelli hospital, explained the day before that any other type of pathology is ruled out and that both the colon (he was operated on in July 2021, when part of the organ was removed, and he had to spend 10 days hospitalized), and the current one are "benign". Dr. Alfieri, who is director of surgery at the Gemelli, did not want to specify how many days Francis will have to spend hospitalized, since everything will depend on his evolution, and taking into account that the Pontiff is 86 years old. During the surgical intervention, the doctor reported, "strong adhesions were found between partially encompassed medial-tenual intestinal loops [loop-shaped part of the small intestine] and the parietal peritoneum, which was what caused the symptoms." The procedure consisted of the release of adhesions, to later reconstruct the abdominal wall with a mesh.
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