As Pope Francis continues to recover from bronchitis in hospital, many have begun to wonder what the process would be if he were to step down on health grounds like his predecessor, Pope Benedict XVI.

Pope Francis has a “polymicrobial infection” of his respiratory tract that will require his hospital treatment to be changed, the Vatican said Monday, with tests indicating a “complex clinical picture” for one of the oldest popes in the church’s history.

The 88-year-old pontiff's medical treatment is a "complex clinical situation" according to the Vatican on Monday.