Apparently this is what Sinead O’Connor died of, it’s just been announced. But how is a 56 year old just dying in any way natural in this day and age?
In: Biology
Usually it’s a cardiac event.
Old people sleep a lot. Sick people sleep a lot. So when an old person goes to sleep because they’re not feeling well, it’s usually chalked up to them just being old.
Often times, the thing that kills them is the thing that is making them not feel well. So they go lay down, fall asleep, get worse while they’re asleep, and then they’re often found deceased when they don’t wake up from their nap / in the morning. Increased fatigue is a hallmark sign of cardiac involvement. How do you fix fatigue? With a nap.
Most of the Dead On Arrival’s we made (EMS) were between the hours it 9am-noon. When people are usually awake, but today, they weren’t.
Natural causes is a coroner’s term, not a medical term. Often listed on the death certificate. In the absence of a single, known cause, it’s usually ruled as natural causes. As long as it isn’t suspicious, criminal, or otherwise “weird,” the coroner isn’t going to put in for an autopsy. They’ll rule it natural causes and release the body to the funeral home.
The death certificate is a legal document. It has to be reasonably accurate. Especially when a crime or accident occurs. Imagine a homicide but the death certificate states natural causes. Now the defense has a leg to stand on stating that the victim did not die as a result of their clients actions. That’s a problem.
Most medical deaths aren’t going to court. So “natural causes” is good enough.
Insurance also plays a part. Life insurance may have certain stipulations in which a certain cause of death may not be covered. Some policy’s don’t cover suicides within X months of taking out the policy. Some policy’s only cover certain causes of death (a scuba diving accident being covered by specific scuba diving insurance). Some policies exclude certain causes of death (aviation accidents not covered for pilots).
ELI5: When you’re not feeling well, you say you’re sick. You don’t always know exactly why you’re sick, just that you’re sick. You could go to the doctor to figure it out but that costs time and money, and it’s not usually going to change much. Sometimes it does when you need medicine, but that’s a special occasion. When you go to the doctor and figure out what you’re sick with and to get medicine; now you’re not just sick, you have strep.
We don’t always know why people die. We could figure it out, but it takes extra time and money. Most of the time, finding out exactly what it is doesn’t change anything. Sometimes it’s a special occasion and we need to know why they died. When that happens, it’s no longer just natural causes. It’s something else.
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