MANILA, Philippines (UPDATED) – Chief Justice Renato Corona’s condition remains stable ahead of the impeachment trial Friday, May 25, but his doctors said “emotional impact” could still expose the beleaguered magistrate to heart attack.

In a medical bulletin issued Thursday, May 24, his doctors at The Medical City, Pasig City said Corona’s “underlying coronary artery disease” has progressed since 2011. This exposes him to an acute coronary event, or heart attack, in a “highly stressful circumstance.”

“It is the consensus of the medical team that attending the Senate hearing tomorrow will pose a risk to the Chief Justice’s cardiac status,” the medical bulletin said. 

But Corona has already signed a waiver stating that he is aware of the consequences of returning to the Senate. His lead counsel, Serafin Cuevas, said he will attend the trial on Friday.

“If you’re in your 50s, and you are hypertensive, and you are put under very stressful situations, you can actually have a heart attack purely on the emotional impact,” said The Medical City’s senior vice president for medical services, Dr Eugenio Ramos, during the press conference.

The doctors also gave an explanation for the high level of the biochemical marker Troponin T in Corona, which initially gave the impression he was at risk for a possible heart attack. The medical bulletin said it can be attributed to Corona’s chronic kidney disease. (Read the full medical bulletin below.)

His medical team has arrived at the consensus that “attending the Senate hearing tomorrow will pose a risk to the Chief Justice’s cardiac status,” the medical bulletin said.

The Senate has given Corona only until Friday to return to the witness stand, after a highly emotional session earlier this week when Corona testified and walked out of the session hall. – Rappler.com