An Indiana mother who died mysteriously during her flight home from the Dominican Republic suffered a carotid artery rupture, her family has revealed.
Stefanie Smith, 41, was killed in a “truly tragic medical event,” her brother Chris Volz said, adding that autopsy results did not indicate foul play.
The injury occurs when an artery in the side of the neck ruptures and prevents blood from reaching the brain, causing neurons to stop working and die.
The condition is rare, affecting only one in 50,000 people, and can be caused by something as innocuous as forceful coughing, blowing your nose, straining your neck, poor posture and airplane turbulence.
But most are caused by a traumatic injury, such as a car accident or sports accident, that physically tears the arteries.
Stefanie Smith, 41, was just minutes into her American Airlines flight home from the Dominican Republic when she became fatally ill on February 28 from an unknown cause.
Smith is pictured with her two children. The cause of death of the deceased mother has now been revealed by her brother
The tear allows blood to get between and separate the layers of the artery wall. This causes the artery wall to bulge, which can slow or stop blood flow to the brain. This can lead to a transient ischemic attack (TIA) or stroke
In many cases, a carotid artery dissection can occur suddenly without a known cause, called spontaneous carotid artery dissection.
The tear allows blood to get between and separate the layers of the artery wall. This causes the artery wall to bulge, which can slow or stop blood flow.
It can also cause problems by pressing on nearby structures such as nerves.
The tear can trigger the body’s clotting system. A clot can block blood flow at the site of the tear, or pieces of the clot can break off and block flow in smaller branches of the artery.
Blocked or reduced blood flow can cause a stroke by starving the brain of blood and oxygen. A blood vessel that supplies blood to the brain can also lead to a stroke.
Carotid artery dissections can occur at any age, but are more common in people between the ages of 40 and 50 and are a common cause of stroke in people under 50, possibly because younger people engage in more activities that could lead to a dissection.
It is slightly more common in men than in women.
Her brother Chris Volz, pictured with Stefanie Smith, has revealed she died from a carotid artery dissection in her neck
Smith and her boyfriend had joined close friends Maria Yannotti, 36, and Clay Sharpe, 43, for a five-night stay at the all-inclusive Iberostar Grand Bavaro in Punta Cana, Dominican Republic.
But the romantic couple’s outing turned into tragedy just minutes after her return flight when she began convulsing and was pronounced dead after the American Airlines plane was diverted to the Turks and Caicos Islands.
A stroke, which can be caused by carotid artery dissections, prevents brain tissue from receiving oxygen and nutrients, causing brain cells to die within minutes and ultimately causing death.
Seizures, in which the body convulses, can occur after a stroke due to the electrical disturbance in the brain.
Research has suggested that prolonged incorrect posture during a flight, such as leaning your head forward, may increase the risk of carotid artery dissection in people who are already at higher risk.
Turbulence in airplanes can also increase the risk.
Certain health conditions increase the risk of carotid artery dissections, including fibromuscular dysplasia, Marfan syndrome, Loeys-Dietz syndrome, and Ehlers Danlos Vascular type IV.
But Smith’s brother Volz previously told DailyMail.com he was unaware his sister had pre-existing health conditions.
Yannotti also claimed that Smith was in good health during his vacation, during which he used the hotel gym and went for runs along the beach.
There have been reports linking carotid artery dissection to weight lifting or high-intensity exercise, but the specific relationship is not well understood.
A prospective research of 750 Canadian patients found that approximately 30 percent of the observed population lifting more than 50 pounds of weight experienced spontaneous carotid artery dissection.
Patients with carotid artery dissections are advised to avoid push-ups and sit-ups for eight to 12 weeks after the dissection, according to the American College of Cardiology.
Cocaine use can also increase the risk of a carotid artery dissection.
Some people with a carotid artery dissection have no symptoms. For others, symptoms may come on suddenly or occur over several days.
Symptoms may include headache, scalp pain, eye pain, neck pain, weakness on one side of the body, and facial drooping.
Patients may also experience problems with speech, difficulty swallowing, or an abnormal or lost sense of taste.
When carotid artery dissection is diagnosed early, the prognosis is usually good.
But it can be difficult to diagnose because symptoms vary significantly between patients.
Research showed that less than five percent will die from spontaneous dissection, while almost 75 percent of patients recover well.
In dissections caused by trauma, an estimated 37 to 58 percent of patients have persistent neurological problems with higher mortality rates compared to patients with spontaneous dissection.