‘Maradona’s death could have been prevented,’ crucial details emerge

A doctor who treated football legend Diego Maradona has told a court in San Isidro, Argentina that the star’s death could have been avoided with simple medical intervention.

Dr. Mario Schiter, an intensive care specialist who treated Maradona in the early 2000s and attended his autopsy in 2020, said a diuretic could have improved Maradona’s condition “within 48 hours”. “Every day I see patients like this in intensive care, who come in with congestive heart failure. We give them diuretics to reduce their volume and, after 12 hours, they’re already back home,” he told the court on Thursday.

The testimony is part of a trial involving seven healthcare professionals accused of potential negligence in Maradona’s death, facing up to 25 years in prison if convicted. The trial is expected to continue through July.

Schiter’s account follows other expert testimony indicating Maradona had excess fluid in multiple organs at the time of his death. Dr. Carlos Casinelli, who also took part in the autopsy, said the fluids “could not have accumulated in less than a week or ten days,” suggesting his medical team should have detected the swelling.

Maradona, who led Argentina to World Cup glory in 1986, died in 2020 at the age of 60 from pulmonary edema and cardiorespiratory arrest. He had chosen to recover at a rented house north of Buenos Aires rather than a hospital after undergoing surgery, despite Schiter’s advice against home convalescence.