Bristol widow died during spine operation

A Bristol widow died from an extremely rare and undetected heart condition while she was having an operation on her spine.

Irene Squire died at the Spire Bristol Hospital in Redland last year during an operation for a compressed spine.

Mrs Squire, 75, from Downend, paid £10,000 for the private operation after developing pain in her shins, body and neck.

On July 1, she was taken to the hospital and was scheduled to have the operation at 1.30pm. But problems started just after she was given the anaesthetic.

Flax Bourton Coroners' Court heard that her heart rate suddenly dropped dramatically by almost half and fell into an abnormal rhythm. She had no pulse and went into cardiac arrest, and despite efforts to resuscitate her, she died on the operating table at 2.30pm.

A post-mortem examination found that Mrs Squire had amyloidosis, a condition in which proteins are deposited in the organs of the body.

The inquest heard in Mrs Squire's case the condition meant her blood vessels received a limited amount of blood, and that it caused them to become rigid so they couldn't respond in an emergency.

Pathologist Dr Hugh White told yesterday's hearing: "If she had not had amyloidosis resuscitation may have been successful, but because of it the blood vessels in her heart could not respond properly."

Anaesthetist Dr James Rogers told the inquest the condition was so rare he had only seen it twice before in 10 years, and Mrs Squire was the only person with amyloidosis he had anaesthetised in 20 years.

The court heard the condition was very difficult to diagnose, and it was usually discovered only after the patient had died.

Professor Philip Hawkins, from the National Amyloidosis Centre, said it was an extremely rare disease.

In a statement, he said: "I am not surprised amyloidosis had not been considered by doctors because of its great rarity."

Deputy coroner Brian Whitehouse returned a narrative verdict, saying the condition prevented Mrs Squire's body from fighting the stress put on it during the anaesthetic.

Speaking after the inquest, her family said: "Irene was a wonderful person who is greatly missed. We hope doctors will now consider amyloidosis as a possible cause when treating patients in the future."