Manila: A neurologist warned that world-renowned boxer Manny “Pacman” Pacquiao should retire now to avert alleged early signs of Parkinson’s disease, a neurological disorder often suffered by boxers, a radio report said.
Noting that Pacquiao has already showed early signs of stuttering and hand twitching, Dr Rustico Jimenez, President of Private Hospitals Association of the Philippines, told dzMM, “I have noticed it, and it’s my personal view that [Paquiao has already shown] early signs [of this disorder].”
“Although I haven’t seen [Pacquiao] up close, I seem to have noticed these signs,” Dr. Jimenez insisted, but admitted he could also be wrong with his observation.
Earlier, ABS-CBN, a TV network, quoted Dr Raquel Fortun, a forensic expert, as saying she was sceptical with the result of a CT scan that cleared Pacquiao after he was knocked-out by Mexican contender Juan Manuel Marquez during their bout in Las Vegas last December.
On the sixth round, Marquez’ right hand landed on Pacquiao’s jaw, and then Pacquiao fell, face down, as he hit the canvas, observed Fortun.
“That was dangerous. If one’s head is shaken that way, one could suffer lose connections and small hemorrhages in the head,” said Fortun.
Chronic head trauma could damage the membrane that covers the brain, a condition that could deteriorate into subdural hematoma, said Fortun.
Other observers alleged that Pacquiao had a slight seizure when he fell unconscious, following Marquez deathly jab in their last bout.
Bosing legend Muhammad Ali and Pacquiao’s award-winning trainer Freddie Roach were both victims of the progressive disorder of the nervous system.
