A coroner has issued a warning over the 'recreational use' of cocaine after the drug led to the sudden death of a man from 'cardiac failure' at just 41-years-old.
Darren Hanton was found dead in his Ashton-in-Makerfield, Wigan, home after a catastrophic medical episode, heard Bolton Coroners Court at the inquest into his death.
Not known to have any overt health problems that could have led to the 'acute heart failure', investigations began following the tragic discovery of Mr Hanton's body.
Medics revealed that remnants of cocaine appeared in blood test results following the unexpected death.
Police were forced to break into Mr Hanton's home in Wotton Drive, where he lived alone, on August 25, 2020, as family grew increasingly concerned that he had not been seen for several days, nor had not answered his door or picked up telephone calls.
Mr Hanton was then tragically discovered on the floor of his bedroom.
There was no evidence of drugs or drugs paraphernalia found at the scene, leading investigators to determine that the cocaine had not been taken immediately before his death.
Enquiries were also unable to determine exactly what quantity the drug was taken in, but the evidence of the drug in a blood sample made doctors believe it contributed to the fatal event.
The medical cause of death was found to be acute heart failure, with left ventricular hypertrophy and myocardial scarring.
Cocaine was noted as contributing to the cause of death in a toxicology report, which read: “Cocaine use, even in recreational amounts, may lead to cardiac toxicity, hence if there is evidence of a cardiac event, seizure or stroke, this may warrant consideration as a contributory factor.”
Mr Hanton's family were left 'shocked and surprised' by the revelation that Mr Hanton had been using the drug, unaware that he had ever taken cocaine before and only ever knowing him to be a social drinker and smoker, heard the court.
The coroner agreed with medics that the death was another 'stark example and reminder' that 'recreational use of drugs' increases the risk of potentially lethal health problems and 'cardiac toxicity'.
Mr Hanton was a company director of a waste recycling business which he ran with his father and was an 'avid' season ticket-holding Manchester United fan.
He was described as being 'very happy' by his heartbroken family.
In a statement read out in court on Tuesday, February 23, sister Sarah Hanton said: "Our entire family is in mourning and is struggling to come to terms with his passing.
"He was larger than life in every sense of the word."
Coroner Timothy Brennand recorded a narrative conclusion, saying Mr Hanton died from naturally occurring disease exacerbated by drug use in a 'particularly sad and tragic case'.
Mr Brennand closed the inquest by saying: “It is clear that the use of cocaine has had a consequence in this case for it has rendered the deceased more susceptible to a fatal cardiac event, because of the side effects that cocaine usage, even in modest recreational amounts, can render the user susceptible to.
“This is a case that is a further stark example and reminder that recreational use of drugs such as cocaine, in whatever form and in whatever circumstances, increases the risk of a fatal cardiac event and, at his age of 41, the events that draw us together today have come as a complete shock to the deceased’s family.
"I am very sorry for the family and for their loss and I extend my condolences to them."
