Elvis Presley's doctor has claimed the legendary singer did not die from an irregular heartbeat as first thought, but of an embarrassing case of chronic constipation.
Dr George Nick Nichopoulos, who was by Presley's side for the last 12 years of his life and tried to resuscitate him the day he died, has released a book titled The King and Dr Nick.
It reveals his belief that it was chronic constipation that actually killed the King of Rock and Roll in 1977.
Presley, who was found dead in the bathroom after going to the toilet, was thought to have died from cardiac arrhythmia, possibly brought on by drug dependency, obesity and a weak heart.
'After he died we weren't sure (of the exact cause of death) so I continued to do some research and I had some doctors call me from different places and different med schools that were doing research on constipation,' the now-retired Memphis MD told FOXNews.com.
According to Nichopoulos, an autopsy revealed that Presley's colon was 5-6in in diameter (whereas the normal width is 2-3in) and instead of being the standard 4-5ft long, his colon was up to 9ft in length.
'We didn't realise until the autopsy that his constipation was as bad,' the doctor said.
'We found stool in his colon which had been there for four or five months because of the poor motility of the bowel.'
In 1975, treatment involved removing part of the colon, known as a colostomy, and at the time Dr Nichopoulos was in talks with a surgeon at the University of Memphis to perform the procedure.
However, Presley's ego got in the way.
'He would get embarrassed, he'd have accidents onstage. He'd have to change clothes and come back because of the way we were trying to treat his constipation ,' Dr Nichopoulos said.
He also believed that Presley's prominent weight gain in the years prior to his death was not a result of overeating or eating the wrong foods, as they initially assumed.
The doctor says that Presley's bloated appearance was due to his severe constipation.