Pope francis dies at the age of 88: Christian Pope Francis died on Monday, 21 April in the Vatican City. Dr. Andrea Archengeli of Vatican confirmed that Pope Francis died due to stroke and heart attack. He was struggling with many diseases, including severe bronchitis and double pneumonia (bilateral pneumonia). When his health deteriorated on 14 February 2025, he was admitted to the hospital, where doctors confirmed him to be bilateral pneumonia. After a total of 38 days of treatment, he was discharged from the hospital on 23 March.
Both bronchitis and bilateral pneumonia are diseases related to the lungs but both affect different parts of the lungs. Bronchitis is inflammation of bronchial tubes (airways), while pneumonia is an infection of air bags (alveoli) located in the lungs. Bilateral pneumonia is a condition in which pneumonia affects both lungs.
What is bilateral pneumonia?
Bilateral pneumonia is an infection of lungs. Due to this infection, fluid is filled in the alveoli of the body and the person starts having trouble breathing. When this situation reaches both lungs, it is called bilateral pneumonia. In such a situation, both lungs become weak and difficulty in breathing. According to experts, if this disease is not controlled in time, then the person also dies.
Who can have bilateral pneumonia?
Coming in contact with bacteria, fungus and viruses are the main reasons behind having bilateral pneumonia. Many times, even a simple fever gradually takes the form of pneumonia. Elderly, young children and people with chronic infections above 68 years can become easy victims of this disease due to weak immunity.
Symptoms of bilateral pneumonia
In the condition of bilateral pneumonia, the person starts having difficulty in breathing, there is high fever. Constant cough comes. Unbearable pain is felt in the chest. It starts feeling very tired. In such a situation, if you too have been ill for more than 3 days and are troubled by such symptoms, then you can become an easy victim of pneumonia.
Bilateral pneumonia treatment
The treatment of bilateral pneumonia is usually similar to single pneumonia, which is caused by bacterial, viral or fungal causes. Treatment may include antibiotics for bacterial infection, antiviral drugs for viral infections and antifungal for fungal infections. In addition, medical help such as comfort, liquid things intake and over-the-counter pain reliever can be reduced.
A part of the lungs had to be cut at the age of 20
Pope Francis was troubled by lung infection throughout his life. When he was 20 in 1957, he had a serious respiratory infection, due to which a part of his lungs had to be removed. In recent years, he was repeatedly hospitalized due to many other health related problems including respiratory.
In 2020, Sciatica was troubled by a disease called sciatica
According to a report by Vatican News, in the late 2020, he had a disease named sciatica. Due to this, he had to cancel many of his important programs. Let me tell you that there is a pain that runs along the scientific nerve. In this, unbearable pain is faced from the lower back to the leg.
Admit in hospital in 2021 and 2023 also
In July 2021, Pope Francis underwent surgery for colon’s diverticular stenosis. During this surgery, 13 inches of his colon was removed. From the year 2022, Pope Francis was seen using walker or wheelchairs in public events. In 2023, due to the symptoms of bronchitis, Jameli University Hospital also had to be admitted for three days.