Florida’s District Six Medical Examiner has completed Rich Piana’s autopsy, and you can read the full report at MuckRock. The cause of death still seems murky.
The most detailed part of the autopsy’s notes concerned his lungs – Rich’s lungs were swollen and filled with fluid, (bronchopneumonia pleural effusion with edema) showed apparent fat emboli and micro-abscesses, and displayed both acute and chronic inflammatory cells.
Check out the following key details:
- An enlarged heart from a “significant heart disease”
- Mild coronary atherosclerosis (plaque buildup in the artery walls)
- Fatty liver
- Congested thyroid
- Discolored and congested kidneys
- Ischemic brain tissue (i.e. brain tissue that had lost blood supply)
- Brain edema (swelling)
- Necrotic brain tissue (i.e. dead cells)
- Ascites (accumulation of protein-containing fluid in the abdomen)
The cause or manner of death was never made clear through the report.
It would be impossible to determine the real cause of death with any certainty, due to Piana’s severe heart disease and openly admitted (performance enhancing) drug use — and the fact that he survived in a coma for 18 days in the hospital.
The hospital discarded the specimens, despite an explicit request that they be retained so no toxicology tests were administered!
The report did not answer major questions other than the fact that Rich Piana had some severe health issues that lead to his death.
Rich Piana’s Complete Autopsy Report:
RIP Big Guy!
