Family of 'happy and energetic' Waterlooville man who died age 22 learn cause of death amid hospital concerns

A young adult died suddenly when his body was “overloaded” after suffering multiple seizures, a coroner has ruled.

At Portsmouth Coroners Court yesterday (Wednesday, August 19), an inquest concluded into the death of Aiden Griffiths, who died at his family home in Waterlooville on March 9 last year. The 22-year-old had spent the previous day at Queen Alexandra Hospital in Cosham, having experienced more than half a dozen seizures in one night.

Aiden’s relatives, who described him as the “heart and soul” of their family, pointed to an unpleasant experience at QA Hospital, where a CT scan was not performed, as a cause for concern. But senior coroner Christopher Wilkinson said even that might not have prevented Aiden’s death.

On the evening of March 7 last year, Aiden suffered multiple seizures at home, and was given emergency medication by his mother, Jolene, as per his care plan. He slept through the night, but after another seizure the following morning, was taken by the family to hospital.

Observations, blood tests and an X-ray were carried out, which found signs of a chest infection and an elevated white blood cell count. No clinical conditions were found, and Aiden was discharged with some antibiotics. The following morning, his family found him dead in his room.

In a statement read out in court, Aiden’s mother, Jolene, said: “Aiden had many complex needs, including autism. He was mute and had severe epilepsy.

“Aiden was a very happy and energetic person, even with his complex difficulties. He was affectionate, loving, and a joy to be around.

“The experience at the hospital will haunt us for the rest of our days. We felt that we weren’t listened to; they disregarded all information about Aiden’s epilepsy. The consultant did not have the nessary skills to assess Aiden, due to his complex needs.”

Dr Joe Schrieber, another of the consultants at QA Hospital, said: “I was not personally involved in the care of Aiden. A chest X-ray and bloods found signs to suggest a minor infection.

“The source of the infection was unclear. When the family was told of the findings, they were offered to continue observing Aiden at home, and they were happy with that plan.”

An initial post-mortem did not find a clear cause of death, and a second neurological post-mortem found some swelling on the brain, but very little else. Aiden’s medical cause of death was recorded as sudden unexplained death in epilepsy, likely due to the multiple seizures he suffered in the days before his death.

Coroner Mr Wilkinson said: “I am really sorry that you had the experience you had in hospital - but I don’t think a CT scan would have told us anything more. With the benefit of hindsight, one could say he most have been in a hospital bed, but even if he was monitored the whole time he could still have suffered an epileptic fit and died.

“The seizures might just have created an overload. We cannot even say if he had another epileptic fit before he died, he might simply have passed away while he was sleeping.

“There was nothing that said there was anything clinically wrong with Aiden. But also nothing that resulted in his death is a result of what you have, or have not, done. We perhaps just need better communication in hospitals, so that everyone feels heard and has a better understanding about what’s being done.”