A WOMAN who died suddenly at home had suffered kidney damage as a result of diabetes, an inquest at County Hall, Durham, heard yesterday.

Kathryn Featherstone, 34, from Bede Court, in Chester-le-Street, had suffered from diabetes since the age of seven.

Dr Douglas Maloney, consultant pathologist at the University Hospital of North Durham, said diabetes could cause sudden death and he had found significant damage to her kidneys as a result of her condition.

Ms Featherstone's boy-friend, Paul Gardner, from Newcastle, said she had been quiet when he had seen her on March 2, the evening before she died, but she said she was fine.

North Durham Coroner Andrew Tweddle recorded a verdict of death by natural causes.