A 31-year-old man with a history of heart problems collapsed and died at a family party, an inquest heard yesterday.

Darren Wake saw a cardiologist in 1998 after suffering palpitations and was told he had an irregular heartbeat which he would have to live with.

However, at a party at his home in Hatch Close, Kirtlington, near Bicester, on January 6, he collapsed and died, despite efforts to save him.

An inquest in Oxford was told the cause of death was inhalation of vomit, although it was unclear what had caused him to become ill.

Consultant pathologist Dr Peter Millard, from the John Radcliffe Hospital, Oxford, said a post mortem examination had found no heart problems.

Mr Wake's wife Helen said her husband had seemed fine in the hours leading up to his death, although he had mentioned he was suffering from palpitations.

Coroner Nicholas Gardiner said: "I can't say why he came to vomit and in these circumstances I have to record an open verdict."