Pope is stable, followed Mass on television as he recovers from respiratory infection, Vatican says

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ROME (AP) — Pope Francis had breakfast, read the newspapers and followed Mass on television Sunday after a second night sleeping well at the hospital where the 88-year-old pontiff is being treated for a respiratory tract infection, the Vatican said.

Francis' condition was stable, as he continues his unspecified drug therapy, alternating in the afternoon between reading and resting, Vatican spokesman Matteo Bruni said.

The Argentine pope, a known workaholic who keeps up a grueling pace despite his many ailments, was admitted to Rome’s Gemelli hospital on Friday after a weeklong bout of bronchitis worsened. It was his fourth hospitalization since his 2013 election and raised questions about his increasingly precarious health.

Doctors confirmed that the pope had a respiratory tract infection and prescribed “absolute rest” alongside unspecified drug therapies. Francis skipped his traditional Sunday noon blessing, declining to even come to his hospital window to wave to a small crowd below that had gathered in hopes of cheering him on.

The @Pontifex social media account, which isn't written by the pope himself, thanked people for their prayers on Sunday.

“Thank you for the affection, prayer and closeness with which you are accompanying me in these days,” the post read.

Francis had part of one lung removed after a lung infection when he was a young man and is prone to respiratory infections. In 2023, he spent three days at Gemelli to be treated for what he later revealed was an acute case of pneumonia.

Despite his Feb. 6 bronchitis diagnosis, Francis had kept up a frenetic pace of late, packing his days with private and public audiences, while taking on the added obligations of steering the Catholic Church through its Holy Year.

The Vatican has canceled his events through Monday at least. On Sunday, a Holy Year Mass he was supposed to preside over for visiting artists was instead celebrated by the Vatican culture minister.

The Vatican hasn't specified what type of respiratory tract infection the pope has. Sometimes bronchitis can lead to pneumonia, a deeper and far more serious infection of the lungs’ air sacs. Treatment varies by severity but can include providing oxygen through a nasal tube or mask, intravenous fluids — and treatment of the underlying cause of the infection.

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