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Pope Francis’ intestinal surgery has reportedly been more complicated than anticipated. The operation was originally planned by means of so-called keyhole surgery, several Italian media reported on Tuesday. In such minimally invasive procedures, a camera and the necessary instruments are guided through small incisions in the abdomen to the area to be operated on.
Because of a scar from a previous operation in the abdomen, doctors eventually had to perform a laparotomy on the pope, a surgical procedure in which the abdominal cavity is opened, according to the reports. According to health experts, it is not uncommon to change surgical methods during a procedure.
During the three-hour surgery, at the Gemelli University Hospital in Rome, Francis had a piece of the colon removed on Sunday. This had become necessary because the pope suffered from stenosis due to diverticulitis. This is a narrowing of the intestine as a result of a sometimes painful inflammation of the so-called diverticula (protrusions of the intestinal wall).
According to the Vatican, the operation was successful. The pope is in “good condition,” awake and able to breathe on his own, it said Monday. The pontiff is expected to stay at the Gemelli Clinic for a week. He is staying there in the same hospital room as Pope John II once did, who underwent several surgeries at the university hospital. If Francis continues to recover in the hospital as expected, he could follow Pope John II’s example and say the Angelus prayer on Sunday from the window of his room, on the tenth floor of the clinic.
Francis had already had to cancel some public appearances in the past because of health problems. The Argentine-born pope had part of his lung removed at the age of 21 after suffering from pleurisy. In addition, he has been suffering from sciatica for some time and has hip problems.
— source: heute.at/picture: pixabay.com
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