Intestinal surgery under general anesthesia: Pope Francis has to go to the hospital

After the general audience on Wednesday, he will be taken to the Agostino Gemelli Polyclinic, where he underwent check-ups on Tuesday, Vatican spokesman Matteo Bruni reported. The 86-year-old pontiff is scheduled to undergo open abdominal surgery to prevent an intestinal obstruction.

“The operation, coordinated in recent days by the medical team assisting the Holy Father, became necessary due to an impacted laparocele. The stay in the health facility will last several days to allow for the normal postoperative course and the full functional recovery,” the Vatican press release said. A laparocele is a rupture of the abdominal wall (hernia) caused by a surgical scar.

This is the Pope’s third admission to the Roman polyclinic since July 2021. At that time, Francis had already undergone an intestinal operation. In March 2023, he was hospitalized again when he contracted pneumonia.