Father weeps at tragic death; DOCTOR TELLS INQUEST 'I WISH I HAD KEPT HER IN HOSPITAL'.Byline: ALAN HARRIS A FATHER broke down as he relived the death of his wife just days after giving birth to twins at Walsgrave Hospital. Craig Middleton wept while giving evidence at an inquest inquest, in law, a body of men appointed by law to inquire into certain matters. The term also refers to the inquiry itself as well as to the findings of the inquiry. which has been told that doctors failed to spot his wife's life-threatening congenital heart condition. Mr Middleton, of Craven Avenue, Binley Woods, said he and his wife, Alison, had been surprised at her being discharged from hospital just two days after giving birth to twins Chloe and Curtis. He said: "She said 'I can't believe I'm coming home. I expect to be here another 10 days or so the way things are going.' It was all such a shock." Mrs Middleton, aged 31, was re-admitted two days later after coughing up blood and complaining of chest pain, swelling and breathlessness breathlessness see dyspnea, hyperpnea, tachypnea. breathlessness Emergency medicine A lack of breathing, detected by a rescuer by looking for chest movements, listening for air escaping during exhalation, and feeling for air flow. but was given the all-clear and allowed home again. She collapsed and died two days later, on January 20 last year. A post mortem [Latin, After death.] Pertaining to matters occurring after death. A term generally applied to an autopsy or examination of a corpse in order to ascertain the cause of death or to the inquisition for that purpose by the Coroner . revealed she had pulmonary valve stenosis Pulmonary Valve Stenosis Definition Pulmonary valve stenosis is a congenital heart defect in which blood flow from the heart to the pulmonary artery is blocked. - a condition which narrows a heart valve. Asked by coroner David Sarginson to consider medical reports that his wife had been discharged feeling well, Mr Middleton replied: "I totally disagree." Mr Middleton said after the second discharge from hospital, his wife coughed up blood at home and, on the night before she died, never slept and said she felt "awful". Mr Middleton broke down as he recalled being called back home the next day by neighbour Janet Church after his wife had collapsed. When he arrived, paramedics were trying to revive her but she later died. Dr Andrew Short, consultant physician at Walsgrave, the hearing that he saw Mrs Middleton after she was readmitted. He had ruled out pneumonia or blood clots Blood Clots Definition A blood clot is a thickened mass in the blood formed by tiny substances called platelets. Clots form to stop bleeding, such as at the site of cut. being the cause of her distress and said "the working diagnosis was that she had chest pain which was not related to the heart". Dr Short said: "The reason I sent her home was that I had not identified a reason to keep her in." Mr Sarginson asked: "You saw nothing there which would have indicated to you that this patient of yours was going to die in the next 36 hours?" Dr Short replied: "I had seen nothing to suggest that." He added: "You have to make a clinical judgement whether it's safe to send a particular patient home... I wish I had kept her in." The jury was expected to retire today to consider its verdict. CAPTION(S): WEPT: Husband Craig; TRAGIC: Alison and her babies |
|
||||||||||||
Printer friendly
Cite/link
Email
Feedback
Reader Opinion