Pope given feeding tube

Pope John Paul is making a slow recovery from his recent throat operation. The Vatican said this afternoon that doctors caring for the Holy Father have put him on a feeding tube to assist his nutrition. The Holy See Press Office Director Joaquin Navarro-Valls said: "The Holy Father continues his slow and progressive convalescence. "The Pope spends many hours each day in an armchair, celebrates Mass in his private chapel and is in working contact with his collaborators, directly following the activity of the Holy See and the life of the Church. "In order to improve the caloric intake and to favour a valid recuperation of strength, enteral nutrition has been started by placing a nasal-gastric probe (tube). "All public audiences remain suspended." He concluded: "Health assistance is assured by the personnel of the Health and Hygiene Services of Vatican City under the direction of Dr Renato Buzzonetti, the Holy Father's personal physician." Source: VIS