The body of deceased national footballer Akeem Adams will return home on Tuesday evening along with his mother Ancilla Dick-Adams and his brother Akini.
Adams, who joined Hungarian side Ferencvaros in August last year, died at the age of 22 on December 30 in Hungary after a heart attack in September that left him in critical condition at hospital.
The former two-time World Youth Cup player underwent four emergency operations, including one in which he was fitted with an artificial heart and a life-saving procedure in which his left leg was surgically removed due to necrosis (cell death) in that limb. That complication arose because of the collapse of Adam’s circulation following the heart attack.
The surgery was successful and Adams’ circulation stabilised but his condition remained critical. Chief cardiologist at Hungary’s National Sport Centre Dr Szelid Zsolt had said that the surgeries prevented the possibility of further heart attacks but Adams’ vascular system was still critical.
Adams’ health had improved in November and doctors were hopeful that he would have been strong enough for a heart transplant before Christmas. However, the anticipated transplant never materialised because of slow healing following the amputation of his leg.
Adams, who made his professional debut in 2008 with W Connection, before moving to United Petrotrin a season later, had slipped into a coma on December 28 and never recovered. The funeral service of Adams is tentatively scheduled for Friday at 11.30 am at the Mahaica Oval in Point Fortin.