Experts who participated in the autopsy of Diego Armando Maradona agreed this Tuesday, during the seventh hearing of the trial for his death, that the former soccer player did not die suddenly, but went through a process of progressive deterioration with signs of prolonged agony.
The medical examiner Federico Corasaniti, who examined the body on November 25, 2020, assured that Maradona presented “signs of generalized edema” and he forcefully ruled out a sudden death: “This cannot be sudden.”
The specialist explained that edema implies the accumulation of fluid in the body due to failures in organs such as the heart, kidney or liver, and noted that the former player had “externalized agony.”
Among the findings, the presence of a “foam fungus” in the mouth stood out, a sign linked to asphyxiation, produced by the mixture of air and liquid in the respiratory tract due to pulmonary edema.
Furthermore, the autopsy revealed that the The heart weighed 503 grams, almost double the normal amount, and presented multiple pathologies such as fibrosis, fatty infiltration and damage to muscle fibers.
On this point, Corasaniti questioned the arguments of the defense of doctor Leopoldo Luque, one of the main defendants, who had questioned this information. “They are boards from the northern hemisphere, where people are taller and heavier,” he explained.
For her part, the histopathologist Silvana De Piero confirmed that the studies showed liver cirrhosis and kidney damage. “The liver had a pathology compatible with cirrhosis. The kidneyn was also affected, with injuries that can develop in months or even hours,” he explained.
The experts agreed that the heart had clots associated with prolonged periods of agony, while the lungs showed signs of asphyxiation due to fluid accumulation, a process that, they indicated, develops over several days.
Another relevant piece of information was the absence of contents in the stomach, which contradicts the initial version of relatives who indicated that Maradona had had breakfast before going back to sleep.
For the Prosecutor’s Office, these elements reinforce the hypothesis that the former soccer player spent several hours without medical control before his death at his home.
Biochemist Ezequiel Ventosi also testified at the hearing, confirming that the blood tests performed after death were negative for alcohol and drugs of abuse.
The trial, which is taking place in the San Isidro courts, seeks to determine the responsibility of seven health professionals accused of homicide with possible intent.
In addition to Leopoldo Luque, the psychiatrist Agustina Cosachov, the psychologist Carlos Díaz, the medical coordinator Nancy Forlini, the doctor Pedro Di Spagna, the nursing coordinator Mariano Perroni and the nurse Ricardo Almirón are being tried.