Little Amelia Cooper was just 15 months old when she was found lifeless in her mother's bed in Cornwall in June of 2016.
Little Amelia Cooper was just 15 months old when she was found lifeless in her mother's bed in Cornwall in June of 2016.
A baby died after a pain relief patch became attached to her skin while she slept with her mother, an inquest has heard.
Little Amelia Cooper was just 15 months old when she was found lifeless in her mother Sara Talbot's bed in Cornwall in June of 2016.
A coroner has now been told her likely cause of death was when Amelia had come into contact with her mother's medication after sharing a bed with her, according to the Daily Mail.
A coroner has now been told her likely cause of death was when Amelia had come into contact with her mother's medication after sharing a bed with her.
A fentanyl opioid patch, which is stronger than morphine, can cause seizures, a reduction in breathing and blood pressure, and when levels are high, it can be fatal.
Fentanyl is often added to heroin because it creates the same high as the drug, with the effects identical, but it can be up to 50 times more potent than heroin.
It is thought the patch was stuck to the little girl's stomach for a "period of time" allowing the pain relief drug to get into her body.
Amelia, of Newquay, Cornwall, was described as a "normal" and "healthy" child prior to her death.
A toxicology report found the drug in Amelia's blood, bile and hair samples, but not in the stomach content.
Pathologist Dr Debbie Cook told the hearing at Bodmin Magistrates Court: 'There were no external injuries to contribute to the death, there were no natural disease and the relevant findings are the toxicological findings.'
Dr Cook told the court that blood samples revealed a level of fentanyl in Amelia, which was within the range of an adult who dies of fentanyl toxicity.
She explained that "the drug can cause a reduction in breathing, a reduction in blood pressure and in some cases seizures.
"When levels become high there will be a coma and in high levels such as this case, then it can be fatal."
Coroner Dr Emma Carlyon recorded an open verdict, with the cause of death listed as fentanyl toxicity.
But she said how the patch got attached to the baby remained a mystery.
Dr Carlyon said: "How the patch came to be attached to Amelia's tummy could not be determined.
"The patch that was attached to Amelia could not be found.
Grandmother Manisa Cooper, 49, (pictured with Amelia) a teaching assistant, said: "We all adored her, she has left a really big hole in all our lives." Photo / Facebook
"There was no evidence that a patch had fallen off at night previously and it is not clear how the patch came to be attached to Amelia.
"I find there are some discrepancies in the evidence. Amelia died on June 5, 2016, at Royal Cornwall Hospital Treliske.
"Amelia was found lifeless at her home in St Austell. She was found in bed with her mother who was in bed with her.
"Amelia was transferred to the hospital where she was recognised dead.
"A patch was missing from her mother's body, it is not clear how the patch came to be attached to Amelia.
"It is not clear how it accidentally came attached, especially seeing as she was wearing a pyjama top covering the area.
"'It is not clear when, where or how the patch came to be attached to Amelia.."
Amelia's father, Ben Cooper, 27, a HGV driver from Newquay, Cornwall, said in a statement read by his mother after the inquest: 'It has been over two years now since we have lost our dear little girl Amelia.
"We have had to wait for an investigation into the owner of the medication into the reason why the fentanyl patch was attached to her tummy causing her to die on the morning of June 5, 2016, and we had to wait until December of 2017 before we were able to organise her funeral."
The statement continued: "She is so sadly missed by her daddy Ben, nanny and granddad Cooper, auntie Laura and cousin Florence as well.
"She lit up our lives with her cheeky smile, and her funny little ways - she was adored by us all. During the inquest we have heard an immense amount of information from experts including pathologists, to the first responders and paramedics who were on the scene that dreadful morning we lost her in 2016.
"The outcome today has given us a line we can now draw under and enable us to move forward, but we will never forget her.
"She will always be in our hearts, she deserved to live a long and happy life but was so drastically taken from us."
Grandmother Manisa Cooper, 49, a teaching assistant, said: "We all adored her, she has left a really big hole in all our lives. Even now after two years it's really hard."
