Blood clot proved fatal for mother of two (From Swindon Advertiser)

Blood clot proved fatal for mother of two

1:10pm Friday 2nd October 2009

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A WOMAN who died as her husband slept beside her suffered a fatal blood clot and ‘slipped away’ in her sleep, an inquest heard.

Tracey Groom, of Belsay, Toothill, had been suffering from flu-like symptoms in the days leading up to her death.

As a result she spent most of the weekend before she died resting in bed, the inquest at Trowbridge Coroner’s Court heard.

Yesterday, on the final day of the two day inquest into the 28-year-old’s death, coroner David Masters recorded a narrative verdict, concluding that the young mum had died from a pulmonary thromboembolism caused by deep vein thrombosis.

A post mortem carried out by pathologist Darko Lazik at Great Western Hospital revealed that Mrs Groom was suffering from bronchial pneumonia – a condition Mr Masters said would have contributed to her death.

The mum-of-two was already in ill health and took a variety of prescribed drugs for chronic back pain brought on by the birth of her first child in 1998.

These drugs included slow-release morphine pill MST and anti-depressant amitriptyline to relieve anxiety related to her condition — medicines that left Mrs Groom susceptible to the condition that ended her life.

Mr Masters said: “The death was contributed to by the bronchial pneumonia which Dr Lazik found and also by the morphine and amitriptyline therapy,” he said.

“We heard from Tracey’s husband Simon how he woke at around 5.30am on the Monday and kissed his wife. He was immediately concerned because she usually woke up when he did this but this time she did not. He realised she was in precisely the same position as she was when he went to bed, that her eyes were not completely closed and she was blue. He knew she had passed away.”

On Wednesday the inquest heard how toxicology reports showed Mrs Groom had died from an apparent opiate overdose. But yesterday Mr Masters rejected the findings after toxicology expert Julie Evans said the data was unreliable.

Giving evidence during the inquest yesterday, Dr Evans, a forensic toxicology service consultant said an inappropriate procedure was used to take a sample of Mrs Groom’s blood.

Dr Lazik earlier described how he cut Mrs Groom’s femoral vessel to retrieve the sample without isolating the vein and after organs had been removed for analysis.

Asked by Mr Masters if she would rely on the toxicology reports submitted, Dr Evans said.

“No, I would not.”

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