On Friday morning, he held audiences at the Vatican before his hospitalization, including with the prime minister of Slovakia and with Mark Thompson, CNN's chief executive. During the meeting, the pope was mentally alert but struggling to speak for extended periods due to breathing difficulties,

The pope has been recovering at a Rome hospital for at least two nights. According to the Vatican, the pope is pulling back from some of his duties, including leading certain prayers.

Pope Francis was hospitalized Friday to treat a weeklong bout of bronchitis and undergo diagnostic tests, the Vatican said, confirming the latest issues with the 88-year-old's pontiff's health that fo

Francis was first admitted to Rome’s Gemelli Hospital two weeks ago, after being plagued by a string of lung-related medical struggles, including bronchitis and then pneumonia.

Pope Francis remains hospitalized in Rome as doctors treat a worsening respiratory infection that the Vatican has described as a "complex clinical picture." The 88-year-old pontiff was admitted to Gemelli Hospital on Friday following a weeklong struggle with bronchitis that required additional medical intervention.

The 88-year-old pontiff was initially admitted to the hospital on Friday for bronchitis. On Monday, the Vatican said test results show Francis has "a polymicrobial infection of the respiratory tract."

The Pope has ‘isolated’ breathing crisis in hospital, Vatican says - The update comes as crowds gather outside the hospital to wish their best to the 88-year-old Catholic leader

The Vatican, though, made alternative plans for Ash Wednesday next week, making clear Francis still had a long road ahead. Cardinal Angelo De Donatis, a Vatican official and former vicar of Rome, will preside over the March 5 ceremony and procession that inaugurates the church’s solemn Lenten season leading up to Easter in April.

Many who know him said that Francis, driven by a sense of mission and a discipline born of his early training, essentially worked himself into the hospital.

Vatican officials said that Pope Francis had developed pneumonia in both lungs, further complicating the pontiff’s recovery

The Vatican said Pope Francis’ respiratory infection also involves asthmatic bronchitis, which requires cortisone antibiotic treatment.