Pope Francis to Undergo Abdominal Surgery for Hernia Complications

Pope Francis, the spiritual leader of the Catholic Church, is set to undergo abdominal surgery on Wednesday afternoon, as confirmed by the Vatican. The surgery has been deemed necessary due to a recurrent and increasingly painful hernia, as explained by Vatican spokesman Matteo Bruni.

Pope Francis is in the hospital for complications with a hernia.

Highlights

By Catholic Online (NEWS CONSORTIUM)
6/7/2023 (1 year ago)

Published in Europe

Keywords: Pope Francis, hospital, Rome, health

The pope's medical team had planned the operation in recent days, scheduling a laparotomy and abdominal wall reconstruction with prosthetic material for the early afternoon of June 7. The purpose of the surgery is to repair an incisional hernia, which occurs at the site of a previous surgical incision. In Pope Francis' case, it may be a result of scarring from his colon surgery in July 2021.

Following his general audience in St. Peter's Square, Pope Francis will be promptly transported to Rome's Gemelli Hospital, where he will undergo the procedure. He is expected to remain in the hospital for several days to recover post-surgery.

The announcement of the pope's surgery comes one day after Italian media reported his brief visit to Gemelli Hospital on June 6, lasting approximately 40 minutes.

Pope Francis, aged 86, previously spent four days in the hospital in March due to a lung infection. Furthermore, on May 26, he canceled all his scheduled activities due to a fever.

Since early 2022, the pope has been grappling with knee pain, resulting in difficulty standing and walking. For over a year, he has relied on a cane and wheelchair for mobility.

In May of the previous year, Pope Francis expressed his reluctance to undergo knee surgery, citing his desire to avoid recovering from general anesthesia again following his colon surgery in 2021.

Additionally, this year, the pope faced a recurrence of diverticulitis, a painful inflammation of bulges in the large intestine, for which he underwent surgery in July 2021.

Despite these recent medical challenges, the Vatican recently announced the pope's intention to visit Mongolia from August 31 to September 1. Furthermore, he is scheduled to be present in Lisbon, Portugal, for World Youth Day from August 2 to 6, including a visit to the Shrine of Our Lady of Fatima.