Pope Francis is in critical condition after suffering a prolonged asthmatic respiratory crisis on Saturday morning, reports UNN citing Bloomberg.
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The pontiff required large flows of oxygen and also received a blood transfusion after tests showed conditions related to anemia, the Vatican said in a statement Saturday night. He is not out of danger.
Although Francis was in more pain than the day before, he remains conscious and spent the day in his chair, according to the statement. At this point, the prognosis is “guarded,” it added.
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The statement signaled a clear setback in the 88-year-old pontiff's week-long battle with pneumonia. Doctors said Friday that the pope's condition is not an immediate threat to his life, though he remains at risk, adding that he will remain hospitalized for at least another week.
Francis has been hospitalized after what doctors called an increasingly complex health problem. The Vatican said he was suffering from pneumonia in both lungs and that medical staff had changed his medication regimen to fight the infection.
Francis, born in Buenos Aires as Jorge Mario Bergoglio, has been the spiritual leader of the world's Catholics since 2013. He is the first pope from the Americas and the first non-European pontiff since the eighth century.