Stroke, not vape, to blame in the death of teen baseball star Kyle Losse: B.C. coroner

A 14-year-old Tsawwassen, B.C., baseball star died of a massive stroke due to a condition that restricted blood flow to the boy's brain, a coroner's report has found.

The report quashes speculation Kyle Losse died as a result ofusing anelectronic vaping device, which was found near him when he collapsed at his home on Jan. 21.

Instead, the B.C. Coroners Service says Losse died of natural causes.

Losse's stepmother, Niki Losse, said on Tuesday that the report's findings were"a bit shocking," given that Losse whowas considered a rising young talent in B.C. minor baseball had appearedperfectly healthy up until his death.

"It's still all kind of settling in exactly what happened to him," she said. "It still doesn't really make sense."

Strokes 'rare' in kids

For months, the cause of Losse's death hadbeen mired in speculation.

The mayor of Lions Bay, B.C., apologized after spreading a false rumour that Losse his son's "best friend" had died after taking a single hit from fentanyl-lacedvape liquid.

Losse's parents, too, had believed that the nicotine vape factored into their son's death, such as causing him to fall and injuring his head.

But the coroner's report methodically dispels those narratives.

Microscopic testing revealed structural changes in the walls of Losse's vertebral arteries, which are found in the neck and supply blood to the brain.

Those changes indicated pre-existing vasculitis or the inflammation of blood vessels which interrupted brain circulation, the report says.

The coroner found significant dead tissue in Losse's brain, as well as swelling and pressure on the brain stem.

The report cautions that the findings are not specific to one condition and that several natural causes are possible.

"Strokes are rare in children and this type of posterior circulation stroke is even more uncommon, with symptoms being variable and non-specific," Coroner Adele Lambert wrote.

Toxicology testing onLosse's blood sample came up negative for alcohol, medications and illicit drugs.

"There is no indication that the e-vaping device contributed to the cause of death," the report states.

Unanswered questions

Losse's stepmother, Niki, saidquestions still remain about the health care the teen received in the days before he died.

After hecollapsed, Losse's family took himto Delta Hospital, where he stayed for about eight hours to undergo lab work and receiveintravenous fluids.

He was conscious when dischargedbut still in poor shape, Nikisaid.

Losse's condition deteriorated when he returned home. Paramedics rushed him later that day to B.C. Children's Hospital, where a CT scan revealed severe brain damage.

Nikimaintains that staff at Delta Hospital should have done a CT scan on her stepson. By the time thebrain damage was discovered, the prognosis was poorand he was pulled off life support.

"I don't feel that it was just fully done properly," Nikisaid. "He wasn'tmonitored properly. He wasn't given the proper tests."

Nikisaidshe now wantsFraser Health to reinvestigate Kyle's death.

In a statement, Fraser Health said it's reviewing the report. It noted that the coroner did not offer recommendations regarding the care Fraser Health provided.

"This is an extremely sad situation, and we know the family continues to have questions about what happened," spokesperson Tasleem Juma said.

"We have reached out to the family a number of times and will continue to try and support them in any way we can."

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