How did Freddie Mercury die? (Answer in your head w/out research BEFORE opening)

[NMAmy]

What she said.....

I gave the correct answer, but truly it is six of one and half a dozen of the other. The pneumonia may have been the last straw that killed him, but that pneumonia wouldn't have hit him so hard if he hadn't had AIDS and been immuno-compromised. Take his AIDS out of the equation and he'd be alive today. Take the pneumonia out of the equation and something else would have killed him, and it probably wouldn't have been much later. He was going downhill fast.

So answering "AIDS" may not technically be the correct answer, but in essence, AIDS did kill him.

Exactly. I've had several friends die of complications from AIDS. Ultimately, they would not have died of those other causes if they hadn't had AIDS.

 

[Master Gracy]

I knew he had aids, so I assumed he died from something else because of aids,
so I say from aids

Im 15

 

[Cindy B]

I just typed in complications from AIDS. I'm not certain if it was exactly pneumonia or not.

 

[TomLovesBecky]

Well the answer that came to mind before I read the choices was just "he died of AIDS" but when I saw the choices I picked "complications due to AIDS"...I wasn't sure if it was pneumonia or not so that's as specific as I could be, I mean isn't AIDS a collection of things, a syndrome and not just one thing by itself, so does anyone really die of just AIDS? Or are all AIDS deaths technically complications of AIDS??

 

[mrdiscranky]

I don't know anyone (other than medical professionals) who gets nitpicky in these conversations - certainlly not 15-year olds. From a conversational standpoint, there is no additional meaning or information passed along with the "from complications due to" - whether we are talking about AIDS, a stoke, or whatever.

From a conversational standpoing, is there a meaning distinction between dying of AIDS, and dying of complication from AIDS? When somebody gets shot, the impact of the bullet almost never kills them - they die of complications resultion from getting shot. But in casual conversation, we don't feel the need to add the complications part - we just say they were shot.

 

[PrincessParty]

He died of pneumonia, as a complication of AIDS. I'm 38.

 

[chisnpeke]

I'd say he died of AIDS. Even if it was pneumonia that was the ultimate cause of death, the AIDS was what made him die as a result of the pneumonia. I'm 19.

To answer your third question, no I would not be offended.

 

[goofyernmost]

To die of complications of anything means you died of the main thing. Without the aids there would be no complications. To better say it you could say, "he died of aids after it had weakened his system to the point of being unable to fight off pneumonia".

Either way...dead is dead. Call it by anything else it doesn't change reality. When saying it any other way almost makes it feel like one is trying to say, aids is no problem, it's that darn pneumonia thing we need to be cautious about.

My mother had pulmonary fibrosis. At the time of her death she also had managed to come down with pneumonia. What did she die of? I'm afraid it was pulmonary fibrosis. Without it the pneumonia wouldn't have existed.

 

[TeresaNJ]

I answered complications of AIDS, but now that I understand what you are really looking for, if someone just came up to me and asked, I would say, "from AIDS". I'm 51.

 

[BoyLovesBuzz]

I need to know the first answer that comes to your head, what you would say if someone came up to you on the street and asked you, "How did Freddie Mercury die?"

ETA: And if you don't mind posting it, how old are you?

ETA2: For the person who doesn't know Freddie Mercury was the lead singer for Queen.

ETA3: Would you be bothered/offended if you were reading a fictional story in which one character said to another that Freddie Mercury died of AIDS? It has been suggested to me that even though the 15yo CHARACTER would probably say, "Freddie Mercury died of AIDS," not "Freddie Mercury died of complications due to AIDS" in the context of the story, that it is misleading to have it written that way.

I keep refreshing waiting for the other shoe... Why would this be bothersome or offensive?

 

[Kitty 34]

I'm a big Queen's fan, in fact just saw the Queen Tribute light show on Fremont Street in Las Vegas. I saw Queen in concert back in the 70's when they rocked the house for 20 minutes straight with We Will Rock You as the giant crown on the stage slowly lifted revealing the band!! It was so sweet!!!

My sons also are fans of Queen and I've told them along the way that Freddy died of Aids......complications of course but Aids none the less. I loved Freddy Mercury and still miss his awesome voice and talent.

 

[cabanafrau]

A large proportion of death certificates list multiple organ failure as a cause of death, which can have many, many triggering factors -- cancer, diabetes, trauma, infection, etc., etc.

I don't see why dying of AIDS would be any more offensive than dying of cancer. They are both horrible diseases no one wants which can be contracted via someone's direct actions or through something entirely out of a person's control. Anyway you slice it, they both cost too many lives and too much heartache.

 

[Disney Doll]

He died of cardiac arrest, because that's pretty much what everyone dies of.

The ultimate cause of his death was because he had AIDs. Because AIDs has had such a stigma since its beginnings, there was a tendency to sugar coat things. If he hadn't had AIDs, he would have had a normal immune system which either would have prevented the pneumonia all together or at least had it not kill him. Properly treated, pneumonia doesn't generally kill a reasonably healthy normal adult. Please, all of you that are going to throw Jim Henson in my face, note that I said properly treated. That means realizing early enough that you have pneumonia and getting antibiotics for it in a timely manner.

My late DFIL died of cardiac arrest brought on by kidney failure brought on by chemotherapy for his cancer.

He died of cancer. If he hadn't had cancer, he wouldn't have had chemo which wouldn't have caused kidney failure.

 

[JR6ooo4]

It is similar to asking whether someone was killed by a gun or a bullet.

Mikeeee

 

[JARNJ3]

Exactly my response, including the age.

In my 40's - I chose "from aids."

Cause it really was aids that brought the pneumonia in.

 

[maelstrom]

I answered with complications due to AIDS. Pneumonia (and many other illnesses) is a complication due to AIDS that they wouldn't have gotten and died from if their immune system wasn't compromised, and I am not sure why you put that in a seperate category. If someone on the street asked me why Freddie Mercury died, I'd answer with complications due to AIDS. I'm 22.

 

[Barb D]

I keep refreshing waiting for the other shoe... Why would this be bothersome or offensive?

There is no other shoe.

I wrote this in a fictional story, and someone who read it said that I really shouldn't have the character say that he died of AIDS when he really died of AIDS related pneumonia. I was just wondering how other people would have phrased it and if other people would be bothered by it.

 

[oxen surface]

There is no other shoe.

I wrote this in a fictional story, and someone who read it said that I really shouldn't have the character say that he died of AIDS when he really died of AIDS related pneumonia. I was just wondering how other people would have phrased it and if other people would be bothered by it.

If you were writing a history, then you might incorporate the nurse's technical answer above. But since it's fiction, you can write the words that sound good.

 

[BoyLovesBuzz]

There is no other shoe.

I wrote this in a fictional story, and someone who read it said that I really shouldn't have the character say that he died of AIDS when he really died of AIDS related pneumonia. I was just wondering how other people would have phrased it and if other people would be bothered by it.

That's an other shoe....sorta. At least it gives better context to the question. At first I thought this was a Aids\HIV\Sexual Orientation v. discrimination\hate thing. Now its a historical accuracy v. 15 year old's nomenclature thing. Which BTW I think your fine.

 

[Jenvenza]

First thought was died from AIDS, but after thinking a few seconds more - I am sure it was from complications due to AIDS. And I am 29.