A WOMAN died in a care home after eating her morning porridge, an inquest has heard.

Avril Dixon, 87, was found dead shortly after being given a breakfast of porridge at Aldingham Nursing Home in Ulverston on June 22, 2020, according to a two-day inquest held at Cockermouth Coroner's Court.

Mrs Dixon, a housewife, was born in Barrow and a widow of James Dixon, a joiner and business owner.

The inquest – held over November 16 and 17 - heard Mrs Dixon died of aspiration pneumonia, dysphagia and oesophageal structure and laryngopharyngeal disfunction.

The court was told that Mrs Dixon had been diagnosed with an inoperable oesophageal structure earlier in the month she died and also had intermittent dysphagia (swallowing difficulties).

Mrs Dixon was identified as high risk of aspiration – when something enters your airways or lungs – and to be fed at risk, the court heard.

READ MORE: Avril Dixon of Ulverston died in Aldingham Nursing Home

At 9.15am on June 22 2020, Mrs Dixon was given a breakfast of liquidised porridge of which she took three sips. The court was told that it cannot be quantified how much porridge Mrs Dixon took.

She was talking thereafter and was last seen alive at 10.35am before being found at 10.45, it was heard.

A post-mortem examination showed a creamy substance predominantly above the stricture and in the lung parenchyma. The combination of the stricture and dysphagia has caused Mrs Dixon to aspirate food into her lungs, the court was told.

At the pre-inquest review hearing, Mrs Dixon's son Andrew Dixon laid out several concerns that the care home had not been provided with sufficient information about his mother's swallowing problems.

Concluding, area coroner Kirsty Gomersal said that Mrs Dixon died due to a fatal aspiration pneumonia due to aspiration of liquid food caused by a naturally occurring dysphagia and oesophageal structure.