Vatican says Pope Francis no longer needs mechanical help to breathe

ROME — Pope Francis’s condition continued to improve Wednesday and he hasn’t needed to use the noninvasive mechanical ventilation to help him breathe at night, the Vatican said.

The 88-year-old pontiff is also reducing his reliance on high-flow supplemental oxygen during the day, the Vatican said in a medical bulletin. His double pneumonia infection, while not completely eliminated, is under control, the Holy See press office said.

Francis celebrated Mass on Wednesday, which is an important feast day for the Catholic Church and is the anniversary of his installation as pope 12 years ago.

Francis has been at Rome’s Gemelli hospital since Feb. 14 for a complex lung infection that turned into pneumonia in both lungs.

For two nights in a row, he hasn’t needed to use the mechanical ventilation mask, and doctors said its use had been “suspended.”

The Vatican is also again reducing its medical updates as Francis slowly continues his recovery, with the next one not expected before Monday.

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