Mother kicked snoring partner out of bed–then found out he was dead
A MOTHER threw her boyfriend out of bed because of his snoring – then realised he was dead.
The gasping sounds Lisa Lee had heard were in fact her 25year-old partner’s dying breaths.
After turning on the lights she discovered that Lewis Little was ‘purple’ and not breathing. She called an ambulance but paramedics were unable to save him.
Mr Little suffered from a rare heart condition called Brugada syndrome, which can result in rapid heart rhythms that cause potentially fatal palpitations.
He had ‘begged’ doctors to be fitted with an implantable cardioverter defibrillator (ICD), a device which restarts the heart in case of prob- lems. But they had ruled he was a ‘low risk’ sufferer, and because his family did not have a history of heart attacks he did not need the device.
Miss Lee is now worried that their two-year-old son Tyler may have the hereditary condition, which she describes as a silent killer. And she has started a petition to give people with the rare condition the option of having an ICD if they want one.
The 25-year-old shop assistant said yesterday: ‘We were told that Lewis would have a long, happy and healthy life – but he died one year after diagnosis.
‘When we were in bed I just thought he was snoring, so I kicked him out of the bed and told him to shut up.
‘But I felt that the sheets were wet and knew something was wrong. I turned the lights on and his face was purple – he wasn’t breathing. I later found out that the snoring sound was the air leaving his body.’
She added: ‘Losing Lewis has destroyed me and Tyler. I believe being fitted with an ICD would have saved my partner’s life. I want people with the same condition to have the choice, low risk or high, to have an ICD.’
The couple, from Ashington, Northumberland, had visited the Wansbeck Hospital in Ash- ington and the Freeman Hospital in Newcastle for regular check ups after learning about Mr Little’s condition.
But Miss Lee said they were assured he was a low risk case. Mr Little was able to live a normal life and was not prescribed any medication.
Miss Lee added: ‘Lewis should have had the option to have an ICD fitted, but he wasn’t “high risk” enough.’ Last night her petition had attracted 1,500 signatures. If it gets to 10,000 it will receive an official response from the Government.
A spokesman for Newcastle upon Tyne Hospitals NHS Trust said: ‘We are unable to comment on the individual care we give to our patients but if Mr Little’s family have any concerns about his treatment we would urge them to talk to us.’
‘The sound was air leaving his body’