Former Argentine football star Diego Maradona showed unmonitored heart failure signs during his final days, forensic pathologist Carlos Mauricio Cassinelli testified in court on Tuesday. Cassinelli, the former director of Forensic Medicine of the Scientific Police of Argentina, coordinated a medical board that evaluated the circumstances surrounding the death of the 60-year-old icon.
Maradona died on November 25, 2020, from cardiorespiratory arrest at his home in Tigre, Argentina. Cassinelli told the court that the former athlete presented multiple warning indicators that required active medical monitoring and treatment.
The forensic specialist identified lower limb edema, excessive urination, snoring, shortness of breath, signs of hypertension, and tachycardia as warning signs compatible with heart failure. He emphasized that excessive swelling in Maradona's legs was one of the most obvious signs and had been completely ignored.
Cassinelli explained that the accumulation of fluid served as a secondary sign of heart failure. When the heart cannot pump the volume of blood it receives, fluid begins to spread to other areas of the body.
Medical board findings
Argentine judicial authorities requested the creation of the medical board in 2021. Cassinelli stated that the board reviewed all of Maradona's medical records in a collaborative effort involving more than 20 professionals from different specialties, who reached a consensus on their findings.
The expert testified that no physician took active responsibility for monitoring Maradona. Neurosurgeon Leopoldo Luque and psychiatrist Agustina Cosachov were listed as responsible for the home care provided to Maradona from November 11 to November 25, 2020, but failed to address his worsening condition.
Cassinelli accused the medical team of ignoring warning signs that were known to them, noting that text and audio messages presented during the trial revealed their awareness of the symptoms. He stated that the doctors should have held an in-person consultation, brought in an internal medicine specialist or cardiologist, or hospitalized Maradona for a proper diagnosis.
Chronic health condition
The court heard that Maradona suffered from dilated cardiomyopathy caused by cocaine consumption, a condition that meant his heart could never return to normal. Cassinelli noted that while heart failure can be compensated, all medical board members agreed Maradona should have remained on medication for his chronic illness.
Two doctors who treated Maradona at a private clinic before his death testified that he had stopped taking his hypertension medication shortly before he died. Cassinelli expressed his conviction that the treating physicians were either unaware of or failed to familiarize themselves with Maradona's complete medical history.
Luque and Cosachov are on trial alongside five other healthcare professionals: Nancy Forlini, a doctor and home care coordinator at Swiss Medical; Carlos Díaz, a psychoanalyst; Pedro Di Spagna, a doctor; Mariano Perroni, a nursing coordinator; and Ricardo Almirón, a nurse. All seven defendants are charged with simple homicide with intent.
