TB as cause of death?

[kristof]

I'm curious to know what people think was the cause of death in this case.

It was written up in a local paper in Australia in 1899: "while his daughter, who had been in delicate health for some time was alone at home, preparing to go to a social event..."
"...found his daughter lifeless and covered with blood due to the bursting of a blood vessel."

I ordered the death certificate and the cause of death is given as 'hemorrhage of the lungs'. She was 30 years old.

So, I assume that this means she had tuberculosis? Is there any other possible cause of death any one can think of?

[mckha489]

She might have had a lung tumour
Or google suggests

Immune disorders (vasculitis, pulmonary renal syndromes, connective tissue diseases)
Infection bacterial/ viral/ fungal.
Congestive cardiac failure.
Bleeding disorders including thrombocytopenia


I think if she had been in delicate health, and it was TB they would have diagnosed it, unless it was a very very unusual presentation as everyone was very familiar with it at that time.

[BushInn1746]

If the natural functioning of the immune system is upset it can cause blood loss or abnormal blood clotting in the circulatory system.

Added:- Smoking can cause lung haemorrhage.

Asbestosis, breathing in asbestos fibres.

The Science Reports for all of these conditions and 'alveolar hemorrhage', are online in the major Medical Libraries.

[LizzieW]

My mother's eldest sister died of TB in 1920.  According to my mother who was 9 at the time, her sister had been coughing up a lot of blood just before her death.

Her death certificate gives cause of death as:
I. TB
II Haemoptysis 3 days.

The definition of haemoptysis is coughing up blood or bloody mucus from your respiratory tract (lungs and throat). 

So it's possible the person you are interested in had TB, although you would think it would have been mentioned on the death certificate even in 1899 as it was known about then, often called Pthisis. 

They also knew about cancer in 1899 too, as a couple of my ancestors died of cancer around that time (although of the uterus).

[fiddlerslass]

Pulmonary embolism is another possibility.

[Annie65115]

A pulmonary embolism wouldn't normally cause rupture of a blood vessel in the manner described. Yes, PE can cause the person to cough up blood but not to that extent.

If a TB granuloma is situated near one of the major blood vessels in the lungs, it's possible for it to erode the lung tissue and basically eat into the blood vessel, causing it to rupture. This can cause catastrophic sudden bleeding where the poor person basically dies through sudden blood loss (coughing it out) and drowning in blood. Lung tumours can do the same and I have actually seen the aftermath of this happening to someone and believe me, there was a LOT of blood. Death is pretty quick in this circumstance (thankfully).

You'll never know what the underlying cause of the haemorrhage was in the woman mentioned; but looking at the possibilities, TB was more common than lung tumours in 30year olds so the odds would weigh on that side, but other options cannot be ruled out.

[LizzieW]

The catastrophic sudden bleeding is what my mum described happening to her sister, so I was surprised to read on her death cert Haemoptysis 3 days.  Perhaps she'd been coughing up blood for 3 days at the time of the catastrophic bleed.

[kristof]

Thank you everyone for your suggestions - I suppose I'm inclined more towards the TB diagnosis, though, saying that, it is and can only ever remain speculative. As was noted above, in 1899, I think TB would be more likely in a 30 year old than an advanced lung tumour. While it's certainly possible that she had another condition, TB was endemic at the time - I've also read various commentaries that suggest that women and younger people were disproportionally effected by the disease. But, it's a guess, albeit, a reasonable guess I think.