Elvis' Secret Autopsy File Leaked! King's Doctor Flushes Away Toilet Death Theory — and Says Icon Was Really Killed by Body Inflammation Trauma Sparked By 1960s Brain Injury
A physician who reviewed Elvis Presley's autopsy report believed the singer suffered from an autoimmune disease sparked by a brain injury.
Sept. 26 2024, Published 7:00 p.m. ET
Forty-seven years after his death, Elvis Presley's secret autopsy file has been leaked, causing speculation about his true cause of death.
RadarOnline.com can reveal the late music legend's doctor claimed his death was actually the result of body inflammation trauma sparked by a brain injury he suffered in the 1960s.
Elvis was just 42-years-old when he was discovered face down in the bathroom at his Graceland home. For nearly 50 years his family sealed his autopsy results – until now, a report has uncovered the extent of his health issues.
Elvis died at his Graceland home when he was 43-years-old.
The King's final 10 years had a devastating impact on his body after years of drug abuse. His weight ballooned and he required a full-time nurse to help he manage basic daily tasks, including bathing.
Due to his poor diet, he reportedly suffered chronic constipation and at the time of his death, he had four months worth of stool in his bowel.
Elvis was additionally said to be taking a cocktail of prescription drugs.
Elvis' final decade of life was riddled with weight issues and drug abuse.
In the seven months before his sudden death, he was reportedly prescribed over 9,000 pills, vials and injections, according to the Mirror.
While an autopsy was performed within a day of Elvis' body being discovered, the results were sealed for decades, fueling speculation on his true cause of death.
Dan Warlick, chief investigator for the Tennessee Office of the State Chief Medical Examiner, attended his autopsy. His statements on Elvis' death largely contributed to theories he died while trying to have a bowel movement.
He said: "Presley's chronic constipation – the result of years of prescription drug abuse and high-fat, high-cholesterol gorging – brought on what's known as Valsalva's maneuver. Put simply, the strain of attempting to defecate compressed the singer's abdominal aorta, shutting down his heart."
A California physician believed Elvis suffered from an undiagnosed autoimmune disease sparked by a brain injury.
Despite Warlick's claims, others believed Elvis suffered a drug overdose; however, one prominent California physician disagreed with both theories altogether.
Dr. Forest Tennant reviewed the sealed file while defending Elvis' doctor George Nichopoulos, who was later acquitted of over-prescribing drugs to the singer.
He claimed the severe deterioration of Elvis' body pointed to decades of trauma, well before his drug abuse issues.
Known as the 'King of Rock and Roll', Elvis is regarded as one of the most significant cultural figures of the 20th century.
Tennant believed the singer's organ damage – as well as issues such as vertigo, insomnia, back pain, eye infections and headaches – stemmed from a serious head injury Elvis sustained in 1967.
He believed the head trauma triggered an autoimmune inflammatory disorder and detailed his theory in a 2013 medical paper.
The physician noted Elvis tripped over a television cord and knocked himself out on the bathtub, an injury he alleged was so severe it caused brain tissue to dislodge and enter his blood circulation.
As the tissue entered his bloodstream, Tennant believed the singer's body identified it as a foreign substance and produced antibodies to fight it.
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Due to a lack of understanding of autoimmune diseases at the time, Elvis' symptoms most likely would have been misdiagnosed.
While weighing in on Tennant's theory in 2016, retired homicide detective and forensic coroner Garry Rodgers said he would attribute the singer's death to heart attack sparked by heart disease and drug use stemming from an autoimmune disorder caused by a brain injury.
Rodgers said: "I'd have to classify Elvis's death as an accident. There's no one to blame – certainly not Elvis. He was a severely injured and ill man. There's no specific negligence on anyone's part and definitely no cover-up or conspiracy of a criminal act
"If Dr. Forrest Torrent is right, there simply wasn't a proper understanding back then in determining what really killed the King of Rock & Roll."
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