It's a situation that seems to get worse every time you hear about it.

Pope Francis has developed pneumonia in both of his lungs, further complicating the recovery of the 88-year-old head of the Catholic Church.

Initially, Pope Francis was admitted to the hospital for a simple bout of bronchitis, but his diagnosis seemed to worsen once he entered the hospital.

Multiple infections

A "mix of infections" doesn't sound like something that anybody needs, especially when you're almost age 90. Unfortunately, that's what Pope Francis has been diagnosed with in his respiratory tract.

Pope Francis was first admitted to the hospital on Valentine's Day. At that point, it was expected that Pope Francis would only be there for a few days in order to beat a case of bronchitis that he couldn't shake.

He was listed in "fair" condition when he entered the hospital, but things seem to be getting worse from there.

By February 17, Pope Francis' doctors indicated he had developed a "polymicrobial respiratory tract infection," or a mix of bacteria, viruses, and other organisms growing in his respiratory tract.

On February 18, things got even worse, and a chest scan indicated the pope had developed pneumonia in both of his lungs, requiring additional medication.

Dr. Maor Sauler, who specializes in adult pulmonary and critical care medicine at Yale University’s School of Medicine, talked about what the diagnosis means for Pope Francis:

"Often times, people will get a bronchitis or an airway infection and that can often start a cascade of multiple problems, including infections in the lungs. It likely means he has more than one organism in his lungs."

"One of the risk factors for more serious infection (is) older age, meaning anyone over 65," Dr. Meredith McCormack, director of pulmonary and critical care medicine at Johns Hopkins University, said.

Complications and recovery

In addition to Pope Francis' advanced age, his situation is also impacted by the fact that his respiratory system has never really been one of his strengths.

Pope Francis lost part of his right lung decades ago and has previously had pneumonia, both factors that could make his current situation more difficult to treat.

According to Dr. Nick Hopkinson, medical director of Asthma + Lung UK, in people whose lungs are already damaged, "bacteria can come and colonize the airways … and you start to see infections which makes it more difficult to treat."

That seems to be exactly what has happened to Pope Francis.

Still, there's hope that Pope Francis will recover.

"If they’ve identified particular things to treat, they can treat those and he’ll start to recover," Hopkins added.