Doctor: Maradona's death not sudden, criticizes medical team

A cardiologist has criticized the medical team that cared for football legend Diego Maradona in the lead-up to his 2020 death. Dr. Gustavo De Niro testified in a trial in San Isidro, Buenos Aires, where seven healthcare professionals stand accused of negligence that may have contributed to the football icon's demise. Among the accused are Maradona's trusted neurosurgeon, a psychiatrist, and nurses.

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Before any patient dies, there are always signs that allow for an alarm to be sounded. We should have had an alarm signal that would lead to a change in the way of dealing with it. But the medical team treating him did not do that.

Dr. De Niro stated that warning signs were present before Maradona's death, which should have prompted the medical team to alter their treatment protocol. "Before any patient dies, there are always signs that allow for an alarm to be sounded. We should have had an alarm signal that would lead to a change in the way of dealing with it," he testified. He added, "But the medical team treating him did not do that."

The specialist emphasized that if a patient shows signs of organ dysfunction and heart failure, they should be moved to a more suitable environment than home care. Given Maradona's pre-existing heart conditions, coupled with fluid retention (edema) and other bodily fluid accumulation, Dr. De Niro asserted that the death was not a sudden event but rather a "gradual deterioration or a chronic condition."

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If a patient is observed or presumed to suffer from organ dysfunction and heart failure, the level of care must be increased and the patient transferred to a suitable environment; which home care does not provide.

This testimony directly challenges the defense's argument that Maradona's death was abrupt and unavoidable. Medical experts have previously detailed a series of ignored "alarm signals" in the ten days preceding his death, including edema, shortness of breath, high blood pressure, and rapid heart rate. The accused healthcare workers face up to 25 years in prison but deny responsibility, often citing their specialized roles and limited connection to the clinical causes of death.

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In Maradona's case, who already suffered from heart problems, with the presence of edema and fluid accumulation in the body, death was not a sudden event; but rather a gradual deterioration or a chronic condition.