Finding into death of Eugene William Twining
Deceased
Eugene William Twining
Demographics
88y, male
Date of death
2016-07-15
Finding date
2018-06-28
Cause of death
Ischaemic bowel in a man with fractured pelvis secondary to a motor vehicle incident (pedestrian)
AI-generated summary
An 88-year-old man with mild cognitive impairment and recent depressive symptoms ran in front of a stationary truck on Burke Road Melbourne and was struck. He was admitted to Alfred Hospital with multiple pelvic fractures and developed acute kidney injury with abdominal pain. Imaging revealed portal vein thrombosis. Despite pain and delirium, no acute surgical intervention occurred. Post-mortem examination revealed ischaemic bowel secondary to aortic atheroma that likely embolised to the inferior mesenteric artery. The coroner identified that the truck driver could not see the patient due to poor cab design, not driver error. The key clinical lesson concerns recognition and investigation of acute abdominal pain in trauma patients with vascular risk factors, and timely intervention for acute mesenteric ischaemia.
AI-generated summary and tagging — may contain inaccuracies; refer to original finding for legal purposes.
Drugs involved
Contributing factors
- Multiple pelvic fractures from motor vehicle collision
- Acute kidney injury
- Portal vein thrombosis
- Atherosclerotic aortic disease with embolisation to inferior mesenteric artery
- Mild cognitive impairment at time of incident
- Poor visibility from truck cab design preventing driver seeing pedestrian
Coroner's recommendations
- The Australian Design Rules as administered by the Australian Government under the Motor Vehicle Standards Act 1989 are amended to require that front warning sensors and side sensors are installed during manufacturing for all cab-over heavy vehicles with a Gross Vehicle Mass equal to or greater than 4.5 tonne
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