Pope Rushed To Hospital, Doctors Satisfied With His Response To Surgery
By SAR NEWS
VATICAN CITY (SAR NEWS) -- Pope John Paul II has undergone a surgery successfully, hours after being rushed to hospital for the second time in a month following a relapse of his flu, February 24.
A top Italian Government official said that the doctors were "very satisfied" with the way the 84-year-old pontiff withstood tracheotomy (surgery of the windpipe) on February 25.
Mr. Gianni Letta, a top aide to Prime Minister of Italy, Mr. Silvio Berlusconi, has visited the hospital and spoken with the Pope's physicians. A papal spokesman, Joaquin Navarro-Valls, said that the Pope was taken to the Rome Hospital for "necessary specialised assistance and further tests." He was taken to the clinic by ambulance at 10.45 a.m. local time, February 24, the papal officials said.
Mr. Letta said the Pope had joked with doctors before the 30-minute operation, which was intended to help him breathe. "Doctors are very satisfied with how the Pope withstood surgery and with the first few hours of the immediate post-operative period," Mr. Letta added.
Mr. Letta said doctors had told the pontiff it would be a small operation, to which he had replied: "Depends what you mean by small."
Doctors said complete healing could be expected in healthy patients within about two weeks. However, given the Pope's advanced age and his Parkinson's disease, the doctors will be particularly concerned about the possibility of an infection.
The Pope's surprise admission to hospital has shocked the Roman Catholic Church. It is likely to renew debate among cardinals and Vatican advisers about his ability to continue to lead the Church.
Cardinal Camillo Ruini, head of the Italian Bishops' Conference, has called on the faithful to pray for the Pope, "to keep him in his mission, for the good of Rome, the Church and humanity." (Courtesy: SAR News)
