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FBL-ARG-MARADONA-HEALTH
Maradona to remain in hospital for treatment following surgery: doctor
OLIVOS, Argentina, Nov 6, 2020 (BSS/AFP) – Argentine soccer legend Diego
Maradona is to remain in hospital for several more days to undergo treatment
following surgery to remove a blood clot on the brain, his doctor said
Thursday.
“We saw that in the postoperative phase Diego had episodes of confusion,”
Leopoldo Luque told reporters.
Therapists treating Maradona had linked the behaviour to withdrawal
symptoms and the necessary treatment would last “a few days,” he said.
Luque did not provide details, but Maradona has a long history of drug and
alcohol addiction.
Although he has publicly said he no longer uses cocaine, friends and media
reports have suggested he remains addicted to alcohol.
At a press conference outside the private clinic in Buenos Aires where
surgeons spent 80 minutes removing the clot on Tuesday night, Luque took
pains to present an upbeat assessment of the 60-year-old’s overall condition.
“Diego is doing well. The CT scan came out well. We were even dancing.
Yes, we danced!” the doctor said.
The doctor said Maradona “agrees” with the diagnosis and would remain in
the clinic.
Earlier Thursday, he said doctors were happy with the former player’s
condition: “He can walk, talk to me….It’s very early this, but the recovery
is excellent.”
World Cup winner Maradona had been taken to hospital in La Plata — where
he is the coach of top-flight side Gimnasia y Esgrima — on Monday for a
series of tests after feeling unwell.
A scan revealed the blood clot, and on Tuesday he was transferred to the
clinic in a northern neighborhood of the capital.
Fans have flocked to the clinic to leave banners showing the star in his
prime and messages of support for the ailing icon.
Alongside Brazil’s Pele, who turned 80 last month, Maradona is widely
regarded as one of the greatest players of all time.
– ‘Depressed’ –
Maradona, who turned 60 on Friday, has suffered ill health before. He has
survived two heart attacks, and also contracted hepatitis and underwent
gastric bypass surgery.
Prior to falling ill, Maradona had been depressed, his lawyer Matias Morla
said on Wednesday.
The famously fast-living icon had only been able to spend half an hour at
his own birthday celebration at his team’s training ground on Friday, when he
had difficulty walking.
“He was behaving strangely. He was very depressed and spoke about dead
relatives that he missed,” said Morla.
He said Maradona was “very worried” about the surgery and praised Luque,
adding that “if he hadn’t detected the clot, Maradona’s fate would have been
different.”
Luque insisted on Tuesday that the procedure was “a routine operation.”
BSS/AFP/BZC/1830HRS