Pope Francis Falls for Second Time in About a Month, Hurts His Arm

Pope Francis injured his arm after falling for the second time in just over a month, according to the Vatican. 

“This morning [Thursday, Jan. 16], due to a fall at Santa Marta, Pope Francis sustained a bruise on his right forearm, with no fractures,” announced the Holy See Press Office, as reported by Vatican News, the Associated Press and ABC News.

The press office also said that Francis’ “arm has been immobilized as a precaution.” 

Vatican News reported that despite the incident, the pontiff, 88, continued to receive his audiences, including the Community of the Argentine Priests’ College of Rome, members of a delegation from Albania and Nosipho Nausca-Jean Jezile, president of the committee on World Food Security. 

Francis’ latest injury follows a previous minor fall he experienced on Dec. 6. The Vatican’s press office said then that he sustained the injury after hitting his chin on his bedside table, reported Reuters.

The pontiff was spotted having a purple bruise on his chin during a Dec. 7 ceremony at St. Peter's Basilica for the installation of 21 new cardinals. Reuters noted that he appeared to be in otherwise good health at the event.

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Francis has experienced health issues over the years. In June 2023, he had intestinal surgery for an abdominal hernia, as he was experiencing "recurring, painful and worsening" symptoms.

In a statement to PEOPLE at the time, the Vatican said, "At the end of the General Audience, the Holy Father went to the A. Gemelli University Hospital where in the early afternoon he will undergo a surgical operation of laparotomy and plastic surgery of the abdominal wall with prostheses under general anesthesia.”

On April 1, 2023, Francis was discharged from a Rome hospital after receiving treatment for bronchitis, the Associated Press reported. He remarked to journalists that he was “still alive” before he was driven away.

Earlier this month, the pontiff addressed members of the Union of St. Catherine of Siena of the Missionaries of the School in which he called on nuns to be messengers of joy and to refrain from gossip.

“Many times in my life I have encountered nuns with a vinegar face, and this is not friendly, this is not something that helps to attract people,” Francis said in his remarks on Jan. 4. “Vinegar is ugly and nuns with a vinegar face, let’s not say! In short: holiness, preparation and friendliness. I ask this of you.”