Coroner's Finding: WALPOLE Gary Frederick
Deceased
Gary Frederick Walpole
Demographics
49y, male
Date of death
2003-10-19
Finding date
2005-02-01
Cause of death
small intestinal infarction due to mesenteric and portal vein thrombosis associated with polycythaemia rubra vera
AI-generated summary
Gary Walpole, a 49-year-old teacher with polycythaemia rubra vera, died from small intestinal infarction due to mesenteric and portal vein thrombosis. He was admitted to Royal Adelaide Hospital with oesophageal varices from portal hypertension, treated with endoscopic banding. On 19 October 2003, he became delirious and agitated, leading to involuntary detention under the Mental Health Act. He was found unresponsive at 6:15am and died despite resuscitation. The coroner found his clinical treatment timely and appropriate. The forensic pathologist noted treatment of this condition is exceptionally difficult—anticoagulation risks haemorrhage while haemostasis allows thrombosis progression. No preventable errors were identified, though the family raised concerns about communication and lack of notification during his final agitated episode.
AI-generated summary and tagging — may contain inaccuracies; refer to original finding for legal purposes.
Clinical conditions
Contributing factors
- polycythaemia rubra vera with increased blood viscosity and thrombotic tendency
- portal vein thrombosis with splenic and mesenteric vein involvement
- oesophageal and gastric varices from portal hypertension
- delirium and agitation in terminal phase
Full text
Related cases
Source and disclaimer
This page reproduces or summarises information from publicly available findings published by Australian coroners' courts. Coronial is an independent educational resource and is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or acting on behalf of any coronial court or government body.
Content may be incomplete, reformatted, or summarised. All court orders for redaction and non-publication are respected; documents with technically defective redaction have been excluded from the database entirely. Always refer to the original court publication for the authoritative record.
Copyright in original materials remains with the relevant government jurisdiction. AI-generated summaries and tagging are for educational purposes only, may contain inaccuracies, and must not be treated as legal documents. We welcome feedback for correction —