Pope Francis revealed this Sunday that he is suffering from a "lung inflammation problem", which will force him to take refuge in his residence, preventing him from praying the Sunday Angelus in St. Peter's Square.

"I can't look out of the window today because I have this problem with my lungs. Reading the reflection will be Monsignor Paolo Braida, who knows it well, because he is the one who does it and always does it so well. Thank you for your presence," Francis said in a live broadcast.

After his speech, the Pope, quoted by CNN Portugal, gave the floor to Braida, who read the reflections that accompany the prayer, although the pontiff did recite the Angelus, even though he showed some difficulty.

This Sunday, Francis admitted that he had a "lung inflammation problem" that prevented him from appearing in St. Peter's Square to pray with the faithful, because he had to hide in his residence, Casa Santa Marta.

On Saturday, Pope Francis underwent tests in hospital after contracting the flu which forced him to cancel his schedule, but the results ruled out any respiratory problems, the Vatican had said.

Francis, who had part of a lung removed when he was young, underwent a computerized axial tomography (CAT) scan, said Vatican spokesman Matteo Bruni, quoted by the Associated Press.

The test carried out at the Gemelli hospital in Rome, where Francis was treated for a respiratory infection earlier this year, was carried out to rule out possible respiratory problems and came back negative, Bruni said in a statement.

Last Saturday, the Vatican announced that the Pope had canceled his audiences because of the flu.

Francis is due to travel to Dubai on Friday to take part in the COP-28 conference on climate change.