Pope Francis is hospitalized at A. Gemelli University Polyclinic, where he underwent surgery yesterday afternoon under general anesthesia for a "laparotomy and plastic surgery of the abdominal wall with prosthesis". The surgery ended before 6 p.m. "without complications". His stay at the health facility will last several days to allow for a normal post-operative course and full functional recovery. For the Pontiff, 86, this is the third surgery at Gemelli. He had been hospitalized on March 29 for bronchitis on an infectious basis that had caused him respiratory problems. He had then been discharged the following April 1, after a rapid and positive course. More complex was the surgical operation Pope had undergone in July 4, 2021 for symptomatic diverticular stenosis of the colon. The operation had been performed under general anesthesia (which Francis himself had publicly revealed had caused him some discomfort), in an overall good health picture for the then 84-year-old Pontiff. In recent years, problems with his knee have taken over, which Francis is treating with various therapies, including laser and magnet therapy, which have strengthened the bone and allowed him to return to walking with a cane for short distances. For longer walks, however, he uses a wheelchair.
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