What causes polymicrobial respiratory tract infection?
Polymicrobial diseases are caused by a mix of viruses, bacteria, fungi and parasites and get worse if a person is already suffering from other lung infections
Hyderabad: Pope Francis, who was hospitalised last Friday due to a respiratory infection, was diagnosed for polymicrobial respiratory tract infection.
The 88-year-old pontiff had part of one lung removed after a pulmonary infection as a young man and is prone to bouts of bronchitis in winter.
What is polymicrobial respiratory tract infection?
Scientists say polymicrobial diseases are caused by a mix of viruses, bacteria, fungi and parasites. The polymicrobial respiratory tract infection happens when a person is already suffering from bronchitis.
Bronchitis, or an inflammation of the airwaves, can be relatively mild in a healthy person but can become much more severe in someone who is older or has existing lung problems, especially when they are unable to cough up and expel the accumulating mucus.
Bacteria and other organisms can colonise, leading to further infection that may be harder to treat.
It’s not uncommon for people suffering from bronchitis to develop an infection with more than one organism in their lungs.
However antibiotics and other drug therapies don’t work in isolation and require the body to respond, which given Francis’ other problems may make recovery more challenging.
As people get older, their immune systems don’t work as well, making doctors especially concerned when elderly patients develop multiple problems.
A decline in lung function and muscle strength can also impair the body’s ability to effectively clear respiratory secretions, increasing susceptibility to infections like pneumonia, a deeper and far more serious infection of the lungs’ air sacs.
Pope Francis had chest problems in the past. He was admitted to hospital with pneumonia in 2023 and a part of a lung was removed. This makes him more vulnerable.
Pope’s frail health
The Argentine pope is a known workaholic who keeps up a gruelling pace despite his increasingly precarious health.
In addition to his frequent bouts of respiratory infections in winter, he uses a wheelchair, walker or cane because of bad knees and suffers from sciatica nerve pain.
In 2021, he had 33 cm of his colon removed because of a narrowing, and then had a further surgery in 2023 to remove intestinal scar tissue and repair an abdominal hernia.
When he had a bad case of pneumonia in 2023, he left the hospital after three days and only acknowledged after the fact that he had been admitted urgently after feeling faint and having a sharp pain in his chest.
Last Friday, Francis had trouble speaking at length at a prayer in Vatican, as he was short of breath.
