Dom João VI's death: convulsions and coma

Abstract

Dom João VI's death occurred in adverse political conditions that led to the regicide hypothesis. The main aim of this paper is to mention life style and conditions of the death of the king by means of narrative review based on primary and secondary sources. Dom João VI died in the way of convulsions and gastrointestinal symptoms. This could be the result of the pathological chain of genetic determination, accentuated by the inappropriate life style, obesity and sedentary habits, and/or poisoning. The finding of arsenic in high doses in his viscera favors the last hypothesis as the basic cause of death, but one can not discard the atherosclerosis predisposing risk factors for a final stroke.