A ST ALBANS man who died after a routine operation to remove gallstones had severe heart disease which caused him to deteriorate shortly after the operation, St Albans Coroners Court heard on Monday.

Mr Israil Ali, 66, of Holyrood Crescent, died in Hemel Hempstead Hospital on April 1 after an operation at St Albans City Hospital.

He was transferred to the intensive care unit in Hemel Hempstead after showing signs of restlessness and difficulty breathing. His blood pressure also went up and after showing signs of initial recovery he continued to deteriorate and it was agreed with the family not to resuscitate if he fell unconscious again after suffering what was later revealed as cerebral hypoxia or a lack of oxygen to the brain.

Pathologist Mr Aidan O'Reilly told the court that two of Mr Ali's principal arteries in his heart had narrowed by 90 per cent while a third was also severely occluded. The heart disease was not picked up in pre-operational scans as these do not specifically seek out the type of disease Mr Ali had.

He said: "The coronary heart disease was complicated by diabetes and the heart was not able to cope with the pressure placed on it by the operation."

Coroner Edward Thomas recorded a verdict of accidental death. He said: "This is in no way a criticism of the initial operation which I am confident was carried out perfectly adequately."

October 18, 2001 18:35