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Pope Francis slept well and ate breakfast on Wednesday morning after he was diagnosed with pneumonia in both lungs, according to the Vatican.
Matteo Bruni, a spokesperson for the Vatican, said Francis had a peaceful fifth night in Rome’s Gemelli hospital.
“He had a tranquil night, woke up and had breakfast,” the spokesperson said.
The Vatican said Tuesday that Francis, who had the upper lobe of his right lung removed when he was young, had been diagnosed with pneumonia in both his lungs and that laboratory tests, chest X-ray and the pope’s clinical condition “continue to present a complex picture.”
Pope Francis prays in front of the icon of the Madonna del Popolo, venerated by Belarusians and Ukrainians, during the general audience in the Paul VI Hall. Vatican City (Vatican), January 11th, 2023. (Grzegorz Galazka/Archivio Grzegorz Galazka/Mondadori Portfolio via Getty Images)
The Vatican also said Francis was not running a fever, which Carmelo D’Asero, an infectious disease and geriatric disease expert in Rome, said was not necessarily a positive thing due to the seriousness of his infection.
“A high fever is a sign of an immune response to a pathogen,” D’Asero said. “Having a low fever and having a serious bronchial infection … is a sign of a decreased immune response and that makes us worry a little bit more, let’s say. Maybe if he had a fever, it would have been better.”
The Vatican has not said how long the pope might remain in the hospital, saying only that the treatment of such a “complex clinical picture,” would require an “adequate” stay.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.