Doctors failed to spot that man, 22, had heart failure…

Doctors failed to spot that man, 22, had heart failure despite tests revealing signs of a problem

A ‘brilliant’ young man could have been saved if doctors had uncovered his rare heart condition sooner, an inquest has heard.

Medics failed to spot that Johnny Alfrey, 22, was suffering from heart failure - despite multiple tests revealing signs of a problem. The university student had been ‘seriously unwell’ for several weeks before his death.

An inquest at Rochdale Coroner’s Court has previously heard that Johnny, from Littleborough, began complaining of symptoms including migraines and fatigue in May of last year.

Doctors were unable to explain what was wrong with him despite tests revealing that Johnny had an irregular heart rhythm - referred to as a prolonged QT - and an 'abnormal liver function'.

Today, a coroner heard that doctors at Fairfield Hospital, in Bury, should have referred Johnny to a cardiologist after the problem was revealed in an ECG on May 28. Instead, he was allowed to leave hospital three days later.

His condition worsened before he returned to the Fairfield on June 8. He went into cardiac arrest the same day and was transferred to Wythenshawe Hospital, where he died on June 24.

Professor Rajamiyer Venkateswaran, a consultant cardiac surgeon at Wythenshawe Hospital, told the inquest that he believed Johnny to have been suffering from a condition known as idiopathic cardiomyopathy.

He added that the delay in detecting Johnny’s heart problem had made a ‘huge difference’ to his survival chances. Had it been picked up sooner, he said medics could have given Johnny treatment including a heart transplant.

“We would have had a better chance of saving this man and he would have probably been alive,” he told the inquest.

Pathologist Dr Leena Joseph gave Johnny’s cause of death as ‘multi-organ failure due to acute cardiac failure of unascertained aetiology’.

Dr Richard Irwin, a consultant cardiologist at Fairfield Hospital, told the hearing that an ultrasound scan should have been carried out on Johnny after his irregular heart rhythm was uncovered.

He said that following the scan, Johnny would likely have been diagnosed with heart failure, and would then have remained in hospital to be treated and monitored instead of being discharged.

After returning home, Johnny’s condition deteriorated before he was rushed back to hospital eight days later.

Dr Irwin told the inquest that while Johnny’s irregular heart rhythm would not have been responsible for his heart failure, it may have been a sign of an ‘underlying problem’.

He described Johnny’s death as ‘difficult to comprehend’, adding: “What is unusual in this case is there is no previous history of cardiac problems. The deterioration is over the course of weeks to a tragic death.”