TOXIC REACTION to the drug ecstasy, leading to death, is not dose related, the Dublin City Coroner has stated. He warned that, if there was any reaction to the drug, medical assistance should be sought immediately.
Dr Brian Farrell was addressing the jury at an inquest into the death of 17 year old Lisa Corrigan, who died last November after taking one and three quarter tablets of ecstasy.
The court heard that Ms Corrigan, of St Enda's Road, Terenure, Dublin, had met her friend, Aisha Fitzsimons, and her boyfriend, Jason Craig, on November 4th last and had gone with them to Jason's house in Tallaght, where they were joined by a number of other youths.
Ms Fitzsimons told the inquest that on the way they had bought some ecstasy tablets from "a person" in Tallaght. "Lisa and I gave money to Jason and Jason gave the money to someone else", she said.
In Jason's house she and Lisa went upstairs and took half a tablet each. The youths were drinking cans of beer downstairs and they joined them, but only drank water.
"We were not getting anything from the half tablet, so we took another half", she said. "Then someone gave Lisa another and we broke it in half and took it. Jason gave us a half later and we broke it into two quarters and took it. That's all we took that night. We both got sick. It's normal to get sick."
At about 3.30 a.m. she, Jason and another youth went to the nearby Primo garage to buy cigarettes and sweets. When she got back the others told her that her friend was not well. She found Lisa upstairs sweating and groaning. "She got sick everywhere. We went into the garden, she could hardly stand. At about 5 a.m. we put her on the couch. We felt she would sleep it off.
"At about 8 a.m. she was sick again and she rolled on to the floor. A young fellow said she felt cold, so we put a duvet on her. Her face and hands were blue. We felt no pulse. We called an ambulance and tried to give her mouth to mouth resuscitation. The ambulance men asked what she had taken and we told them. They asked me if I was OK and I said I was.
Mr Jason Craig told the court that he had gone to Springfield, Tallaght, with the two girls, where they had obtained ecstasy. "They bought two each. I think they paid £12 for them."
Mr Kevin Fitzgerald said that he went to a party in Jason Craig's house with a friend and brought some cans of beer. "Lisa Corrigan and myself got together after a while and we were kissing on the couch. She said she had a headache and she went upstairs. I went up and lay beside her and talked to her. We came back to the kitchen and she got sick into the sink.
"The others went to Primo and she got sick all over the kitchen floor. We went back upstairs and I put, my arm around her and she got sick all over me."
Prof Dermot Hourihane gave evidence of the autopsy. He said that death was due to "hypotoxic brain damage, caused by circulatory collapse consistent with a drug reaction". There was evidence of an episode of very low blood pressure, which he presumed came about as a result of profound sweating, which follows taking ecstasy.
Summing up, he said that death was probably due to sweating, leading to a drop in blood pressure, which in turn led to a lack of blood to the brain.
Ms Corrigan was pronounced dead on November 9th after three days on life support. She had never regained consciousness. The jury accepted Prof Hourihane's medical findings and brought in a verdict of death by misadventure.