An autopsy report on a brain-damaged woman at the centre of a long legal battle in the US has shown that she suffered no trauma before her collapse. Terri Schiavo's parents had accused her husband of abusing her before the collapse in 1990, but Michael Schiavo denied the claim.
The report also confirmed Mr Schiavo's assertion that she was in a persistent vegetative state. Schiavo died in March, nearly two weeks after her feeding tube was removed. Examiner John Throgmartin said there was no evidence of trauma or strangulation prior to Schiavo's collapse.
The autopsy also could not prove that she was suffering from an eating disorder at the time - her diminished potassium levels at the time could have been affected by emergency treatment. The 41-year-old was found not to have suffered a heart attack or been administered harmful drugs or other substances before her death. She died of dehydration. The report also said her brain was only half its normal size at her death.
She was incapable of surviving without her feeding tube, Mr Throgmartin said, adding that she was blind and incapable of thinking, feeling or interacting with her environment. This damage was irreversible, and no amount of therapy or treatment would have regenerated the massive loss of neurons," he said. | 
