Medical Examiner Cites Natural Causes Not Steroids As Cause of Death for the Ultimate Warrior

The Maricopa County Medical Examiner's Officer has announced that professional wrestling legend Brian Hellwig (aka The Ultimate Warrior) died from a massive heart attack. Some talk show hosts and tabloid television shows had speculated that the cause of death was anabolic steroids.

Cari Gerchick, the spokesperson for the Medical Examiner's Office, said that died of “atherosclerotic/arteriosclerotic cardiovascular disease” which is the technical term for heart disease. The death was described as due to “natural causes” since the use of alcohol and other drugs, like anabolic steroids, were not suspected of being directly involved. There was no evidence to suggest that Warrior recently used steroids or continued using steroids after his retirement from pro wrestling in 1998.

Television talk show host Nancy Grace couldn't be bothered to wait for the facts before she jumped to the conclusion that steroids claimed the life of Warrior. She openly speculated that Warrior was dead because of steroids on her talk show on CNN's Headline News (HLN) channel last week.

And if there was any coroner's office in the world who would be willing to blame steroids for Warrior's death, it would have been the Maricopa County Medical Examiner's Office. The office has the distinction of being the first to declare anabolic steroid “intoxication” as an official cause of death in cases of accidental drug overdose. 

In 2008, Maricopa County Medical Examiner Vladimir Shvarts, M.D. identified anabolic steroid intoxication as a contributing factor in the accidental overdose death of Aaron Achley. Of course, Xanax (alprazolam), Oxycontin (oxycodone) and cocaine were the obvious factors leading to Achley's death. But Dr. Shvarts was under political pressure to also include steroids as a contributing factor.

It should be noted that the role anabolic steroid abuse may play in the progression of cardiovascular disease can not be ignored. But to blame steroids at the exclusion of any and all other lifestyle factors does not fairly or accurately reflect the many contributors associated with athersclerosis. There are many other factors, including genetic predispositions. Some of these may play a much more significant role. 

If one is interested in preventing such tragedies in the future rather than simply demonizing steroids, the other risk factors would also be emphasized.

Source:

Barnett, J. (April 14, 2014). Autopsy reveals Ultimate Warrior died of heart disease. Retrieved from //www.usatoday.com/story/sports/2014/04/14/ultimate-warrior-wwe-autopsy-cause-of-death/7713003/