The death of Elvis Presley, the “King of Rock ‘n’ Roll,” has been a topic of intrigue and mystery for decades, especially with the family keeping the autopsy results sealed for 50 years.
His sudden passing at the age of 43 in 1977 raised numerous questions, leaving fans and medical professionals alike to speculate about the cause of his demise.
Elvis was found on the bathroom floor at his beloved Graceland estate, face-first and seemingly having fallen off the toilet. His health had drastically declined in the years leading up to his death, with his lifestyle contributing to his deteriorating condition.
His substance abuse, including excessive drug use, was a major factor in his weight gain, which saw him reach 25 stone. In his later years, Elvis would often remain in his bedroom, indulging in unhealthy habits like eating cheeseburgers, requiring constant care from a nurse.
One of the more shocking aspects of his health was his refusal to bathe during 1975, leading to sores on his body. His poor diet also led to severe constipation, and a post-mortem revealed that he had stool compacted in his bowel for several months. Additionally, Elvis had been prescribed nearly 9,000 pills, vials, and injections during the last seven months of his life.
On the day of his death, it was his girlfriend, Ginger Alden, who tragically discovered him. She described finding Elvis in a disturbing position, with his body showing signs of an immediate collapse.
“His arms lay on the ground, close to his sides, palms facing upward,” Alden recalled in her memoir. She could see that, from the moment he fell, Elvis had not moved, and he was unresponsive when she tried to check for signs of life.
The autopsy was performed on the same day, but the report was sealed by the Presley family for half a century, fueling speculation about the true cause of death.
Dan Warlick, a Tennessee medical examiner, later stated that Elvis’ chronic constipation, a result of his years of drug abuse, led to a condition known as Valsalva’s maneuver. This strain from trying to defecate may have caused the compression of his abdominal aorta, which then shut down his heart.
Some speculated that Elvis’ death was the result of a drug overdose, but coroner Joseph Davis, who reviewed the case in 1994, disagreed. He argued that had it been an overdose, Elvis would have slipped into a sleep-like state and would have sought help before dying. The position of Elvis’ body, according to Davis, indicated that he had a seizure just before he fell and died.
Medical experts, including California doctor Forest Tennant, have weighed in on Elvis’ health issues. Tennant, who reviewed Elvis’ medical history while defending the singer’s doctor, Dr. George Nichopoulos, pointed out that almost every organ in Elvis’ body had suffered from poor health.
Elvis, once physically fit and active in his youth, began experiencing numerous ailments after years of drug abuse and a poor diet. His symptoms included vertigo, back pain, insomnia, jaundice, and a bleeding ulcer. Despite these health setbacks, he continued to live a life of excess.
Tennant believes that many of these health problems could have stemmed from a serious head injury Elvis sustained in 1967, which he suggested led to an autoimmune disorder.
The head injury caused brain tissue to leak into his blood, prompting the immune system to attack itself, causing the chronic pain, weight gain, and organ problems that plagued him for years. Although autoimmune diseases were not well understood at the time, Tennant’s theories have gained support as the understanding of these conditions has evolved.
A retired forensic expert, Garry Rodgers, who reviewed Elvis’ case, concluded that the singer’s death was likely the result of a heart attack, compounded by heart disease and the drug use that was influenced by the autoimmune disorder.
Rodgers emphasized that there was no cover-up or foul play involved, suggesting that Elvis’ death was an unfortunate accident due to his medical conditions and lifestyle choices.
The true cause of Elvis Presley’s death remains a subject of debate, but the possibility of a heart attack triggered by drug use and a long-standing autoimmune disorder may offer the most plausible explanation.
As the release of the full autopsy report in 2027 looms, fans and medical experts will continue to reflect on the life and death of the man who forever changed the music world.