Deceased
Eric Horace Julien
Demographics
86y, male
Coroner
Coroner Audrey Jamieson
Date of death
2012-11-13
Finding date
2014-11-27
Cause of death
Acute on chronic renal failure secondary to rhabdomyolysis as a consequence of drug interaction between Simvastatin and Clarithromycin
AI-generated summary
An 86-year-old man with chronic renal impairment (eGFR 37) died from acute-on-chronic renal failure secondary to rhabdomyolysis caused by a contraindicated drug interaction. His GP prescribed clarithromycin for a chest infection without ceasing simvastatin, despite this combination being explicitly contraindicated in MIMS since 2011. The GP's usual practice was to consult MIMS before prescribing, but he omitted this check because he had previously prescribed the same combination without incident (before the contraindication was formally documented). The coroner found the prescribing error causal in the death but accepted the GP's sincere acknowledgment of error and commitment to always consult prescribing references. Clinicians must verify current contraindications before every prescription, especially in patients with renal impairment, rather than relying on prior uneventful use. Drug interaction resources must be checked consistently regardless of previous patient history.
AI-generated summary and tagging — may contain inaccuracies; refer to original finding for legal purposes. Report an inaccuracy.
Specialties
Error types
Drugs involved
Clinical conditions
74y · Male·Acute myocardial infarction complicated by multiple organ failure
Ronald William Beaumont, 74, died from acute myocardial infarction complicated by multiple organ failure following a second shoulder washout procedure. Key clinical lessons: (1) Despite inadvertent withholding of dual an…
25y · Male·Combined drug toxicity
Harrison William Ladd, 25, died from combined drug toxicity involving clonazepam, dexamphetamine, codeine, diazepam and pholcodine. He had complex mental health and substance use disorder requiring specialist addiction c…
31y · Male·mixed drug toxicity (methadone, diazepam, pregabalin, promethazine, pizotifen)
A 31-year-old man subject to a post-sentence supervision order died from mixed drug toxicity (methadone, diazepam, pregabalin, promethazine, pizotifen) at a residential facility. He was a vulnerable person with acquired …
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. Some material may have been redacted or restricted by court order or privacy requirements. 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 — report an inaccuracy here.