Liver patient died from sepsis, Coroner's Court told

Sepsis directly caused the death of a liver disease patient whose condition worsened following two organ transplants, the Coroner’s Court heard on Wednesday. Tang Kwai-sze, a hepatitis B carrier, had two liver transplants at Queen Mary Hospital in April 2017. She died in August that year at the age of 44. Two doctors who treated Tang, Lam Chi-kwan and Chan Siu-kim, were later found guilty of professional misconduct for allegedly failing to prescribe an antiviral drug she needed. Alfred Wong, an intensive care doctor at the hospital, told the Coroner's Court that Tang developed complications and infections after the operations, and required various treatments such as an artificial lung and mechanical ventilation to provide a high concentration of oxygen. “She did not do well. She subsequently developed a severe infection to the lungs. After the second liver transplant, her lung condition continued to deteriorate,” Wong told the inquest before Coroner Monica Chow and a five-person jury. Gavin Chan from the hospital’s department of pathology, who conducted an autopsy on Tang, said sepsis was found to be the direct cause of her death. He noted that Tang suffered from a form of pneumonia and a build-up of fluid in the lungs, which were concluded to have contributed to her state. But Chan said there were no signs of a hepatitis B relapse in the four months between the second transplant and Tang’s death. He also took the opportunity at the hearing to speak to Tang’s eldest daughter, Michelle Wu, saying he understood the past several years had not been easy for the family. ”Thank you for allowing me to conduct this autopsy. I hope this could help you understand your mother’s condition more and overcome grief,” he said. Wu, in response, bowed and thanked Chan: “No one in your position had said this to me.” The hearing was set to continue on Thursday.