Rome Newsroom, Jun 6, 2023 / 05:36 am (CNA).
Pope Francis went to a Rome hospital’s center for the elderly for a visit on Tuesday, according to Italian media reports.
Italian news agency ANSA reported that Pope Francis spent about 40 minutes at Gemelli Hospital before returning to his Vatican residence shortly before noon on June 6.
Vatican spokesman Matteo Bruni issued a brief statement June 6 confirming media reports.
Bruni said: “This morning Pope Francis went to Gemelli Hospital to undergo some clinical examinations and returned to the Vatican before noon.”
According to its website, Gemelli Hospital’s center for elderly patients has a day hospital as well as areas for acute patients, rehabilitation, neuropsychology, and research.
Pope Francis, 86, canceled meetings on May 26 due to a fever. He resumed his normal activities the next day.
At the end of March he was hospitalized for four days for a lung infection.
Since early 2022 the pope has suffered from knee pain. He started to have difficulty standing and walking and has been using a cane and wheelchair for over a year.
He has also dealt this year with a recurrence of diverticulitis, a painful inflammation of bulges in the large intestine, for which he was operated on in July 2021.
Despite his recent medical challenges, the Vatican recently announced the pope’s intention to visit Mongolia Aug. 31–Sept. 1.
Francis is also scheduled to be in Lisbon, Portugal, for World Youth Day Aug. 2–6. The trip also includes a visit to the Shrine of Our Lady of Fatima.
This story was updated at 6:39 a.m. MDT with the statement from Matteo Bruni.
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