Vatican officials on Wednesday said Pope John Paul II was in a stable condition after the pontiff was rushed to hospital with breathing difficulties.
The 84-year-old pope was taken to the Gemelli hospital, in Rome, after a bout of flu suddenly worsened on Tuesday.
On Tuesday night, the Vatican said he had suffered an acute attack of laryngospasm — a blockage of air to the lungs — and needed urgent medical care. However, it added that his condition did not warrant him being put in intensive care.
Joaquin Navarro-Valls, the Vatican’s chief spokesperson, on Wednesday morning said the pope had received what he called ”respiratory assistance”, but that tests had shown his heart and breathing were functioning normally. He added that the pontiff had not lost consciousness at any point, and took Mass from his hospital bed this morning despite still having a slight fever.
A Vatican priest, who declined to be named, had earlier told Reuters: ”The pope rested well. Let’s stay calm about this.”
Medical experts said acute laryngospasm was very rarely fatal, but that the pope’s age and medical history complicated matters.
The pontiff has occasionally had difficulty breathing since developing Parkinson’s disease a decade ago, and the flu was said to have complicated his condition.
He came down with flu on Sunday, cancelling all his public engagements for Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday. It was the first time since September 2003, when he suffered an intestinal ailment, that he had missed an appointment on health grounds. Rome has been hit by an unusually cold snap which has led to an outbreak of flu this winter.
Earlier, doctors had been expected to speak at 9am local time (8am GMT), but staff at the Gemelli hospital said they would not be making any statements. ”We have nothing to say on the pope’s condition, and nowhere to say it,” a spokesman said.
The Polish-born pontiff has been treated in the Gemelli at least six times during his 26-year papacy, and has his own suite on the 10th floor. Wellwishers, the media and dozens of police have started to congregate outside.
”I just found out that the pope is here. I am really, really sorry. I hope he pulls through,” Mario Celli, who arrived at the hospital before sunrise, said. Prayers were on Wednesday being said for the pope across Britain and throughout the world. – Guardian Unlimited Â