Finding into death of Paul Kenneth Stephens
Deceased
PAUL KENNETH STEPHENS
Demographics
42y, male
Date of death
2008-03-21
Finding date
2011-05-13
Cause of death
Ischaemic heart disease - coronary atherosclerosis and thrombosis
AI-generated summary
Paul Stephens, a 42-year-old man with intellectual disability, died from ischaemic heart disease with coronary atherosclerosis and thrombosis. He presented with symptoms consistent with acute coronary syndrome (arm pain, vomiting) in the days before his death, which were initially attributed to other causes. He was receiving treatment from a GP for polysubstance abuse (opioid dependence, benzodiazepine seeking) with Suboxone and Valium. Post-mortem toxicology showed buprenorphine, benzodiazepines, and cannabis but these were not considered contributory to death. The clinical lesson is recognising acute coronary syndrome presentations in younger patients with substance use disorders, who may have atypical presentations masked by concurrent medication and social factors. Earlier recognition of cardiac symptoms and appropriate medical evaluation could potentially have identified the underlying cardiac pathology.
AI-generated summary and tagging — may contain inaccuracies; refer to original finding for legal purposes.
Specialties
Error types
Drugs involved
Contributing factors
- Coronary atherosclerosis
- Coronary thrombosis
- Symptoms of acute coronary syndrome not recognised or acted upon
Full text
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