Pope John Paul II gives his blessing during the weekly general audience at the Vatican last month.
Photo: AP
Related
Web links
Pope John Paul II was fighting for breath when he was hospitalised in an emergency, Vatican spokesman Joaquin Navarro-Valls said.
A medical report on the state of his health is planned for 1900 AEDT today, doctors said.
They said the health report would be compiled by the Pope's personal physician, Dr Renato Buzzonetti, who had left Rome's Gemelli hospital about 1130 AEDT and was due to return several hours later, the same source said.
Navarro-Valls denied speculation today that the 84-year-old pontiff, who suffers from Parkinson's disease, had been put on a life-support machine.
The Vatican statement came after intense speculation over the frail Pope's state of health after Ansa reported he had been taken to the hospital outside the Vatican walls "as a precaution".
Dozens of journalists and television crews rushed to the hospital and began a vigil outside the hospital gates as the world's Catholics waited for news of their spiritual leader.
The Pope was taken to hospital last night with complications from a flu he had been suffering for days.
"For this reason it was urgently decided that he be taken to the Policlinico Gemelli which happened at 10:50pm (8.50am AEDT)," the spokesman said in a statement released shortly before midnight yesterday.
Laryngo-spasm is a medical term for the closure of the larynx that blocks the passage of air to the lungs.
The Vatican statement came after intense speculation over 84-year-old John Paul II's state of health after Italy's Ansa news agency announced he had been taken to Rome's Gemelli hospital outside the Vatican walls "as a precaution".
Citing Vatican sources, the agency said the pontiff's health did not give undue cause for concern because a fever he contracted on Sunday had gone down, though the Pope did have a heavy cough.
But Navarro-Valls denied speculation that the Pope had been put on a life-support machine.
"He is not in reanimation," the spokesman said, adding that the pontiff was being cared for by his medical team in a special room in the Gemelli hospital.
In recent years, the Pope - who suffers from Parkinson's disease, has been dogged by shortness of breath which has often forced him to leave much of his prepared homilies and speeches to aides to finish for him.
But only rarely does he cancel official engagements for health reasons, despite his frail condition and advanced age.
World political and religious leaders have many times paid tribute to the dignity with which the frail pontiff bears his suffering and it is rare that he misses a public engagement.
The last time he cancelled a public appearance was in September 2003, because of gastric problems which had raised concerns for his health, especially after his visit to Slovakia just a few days previously appeared to have left him exhausted.
He has previously had to cancel public appearances because of flu, which is particularly dangerous for the elderly, in January 1990 and February 1997.
The Pope was noticeably hoarse during his regular weekly Angelus address from his apartment window overlooking Saint Peter's Square on Sunday.
He was however well enough on Monday to formally receive, as planned, the latest edition of the Pontifical yearbook, which reveals the latest statistics regarding vocations in the worldwide Roman Catholic church.
Despite his hoarseness in his last public appearance at the Sunday angelus, the Pope appeared in reasonably good form, given his age and infirmity due to a long battle with Parkinson's.
He joked with young children who joined him for the Angelus to help him release a dove, symbolising a message of peace, which was reluctant to fly off from his apartment window.
The Vatican announced earlier yesterday that the Pope cancelled all his public appointments in the coming days because of the "continuing progression" of his flu and confirmed that he would not hold his normal weekly general audience today.
"In consequence, his appointments scheduled for the coming days have been postponed. In particular, the general audience will not take place tomorrow," the Vatican said.
"At this state I naturally can't predict whether it will be a matter of a day or three days. Logically, it will be short-term deferment," the papal spokesman later told Vatican radio.
AFP
- Forwarded by www.goa-world.com
KGTS' musicial show with Miss Lorna on 4/2/2005 at 3:30 pm in Kuwait.
Goa's finest www.colaco.net www.supergoa.com www.goa-world.com
Gulf Goans e-Newsletter yahoogroups.com/group/gulf-goans/
Moderator Gaspar Almeida/Presented by Uly Menezes, archived at:
www.goa-world.com/goa/ since 1994.
Thanks for the continued support of the www.goa-world.com/goa/ team.
__________________________________________________
Do You Yahoo!?
Tired of spam? Yahoo! Mail has the best spam protection around
http://mail.yahoo.com
http://www.goa-world.com
http://www.live365.com/stations/61664 Live Konkani Music
http://www.mahableshwar.com/
Addresses:
Post message: [email protected]
Subscribe: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Unsubscribe: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
List owner: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
URL to this page:
http://www.yahoogroups.com/group/gulf-goans
Yahoo! Groups Links
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/gulf-goans/
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
