WORLD NEWS | Pope briefly in hospital for two months after bronchitis before returning to Vatican

ROME, June 6 (AP) — Pope Francis made a brief trip to Rome’s main hospital Tuesday for checkups and returned to the Vatican after two months in which he was hospitalized with acute bronchitis.

Vatican spokesman Matteo Bruni said the pope had undergone “some clinical checks” at Gemelli Hospital and returned to the Vatican by noon.

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Witnesses at Porta Perugino, one of the main entrances to the Vatican City State, told The Associated Press that Francis greeted guards as usual before returning to his residence.

Francis, 86, spent three days in Gemelli Hospital in late March.

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Initially, the Vatican said he had had a scheduled test, but the Pope came to reveal he was experiencing chest pains and was rushed to hospital where he was diagnosed with bronchitis. He was treated with intravenous antibiotics and was discharged on April 1, joking that he was “alive”.

The Argentine pope had part of his lung removed as a young man. He also suffers from sciatica and has been using a wheelchair and walker for over a year due to a torn ligament in his knee.

Francis has a busy schedule recently, with many viewers every day. The Vatican recently confirmed a travel-packed August when the Holy See and Italy are usually on vacation, with a four-day visit to Portugal in the first week of August and a similarly extended trip to Mongolia starting August 31 .

The Vatican on Tuesday released the planned itinerary for Francis’ visit to Portugal for World Youth Day events from August 2-6, suggesting the trip went well. The itinerary confirmed a typically busy schedule that included all protocol meetings for an official state visit as well as several activities with young people and a day trip to the Marian Shrine of Fatima.

Francis’ next public appointment, if confirmed, will be his weekly general audience in St Peter’s Square every Wednesday. (Associated Press)

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