Dallas Morning News: Bacteria led to socialite's death (my friends' sis)

[Pachamama]

This is a story in today's Dallas Morning News re. a good friend of mine's sister....It's a strange story and the circumstances are really weird. Her sister had a lot of issues, but I still have been very bothered by the "circumstances" of her sudden death. Weird "high society" drama....meningitis from Listeria infection....liver failure from too much Tylenol....unexplained bruising....lots of court battles with ex-husband (son of former Cowboys owner) etc...
____________________________________________________________________
http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/news/city/parkcities/stories/060705dnmetmurchison.12166a069.html

Meningitis worsened by liver failure, probably from acetaminophen

By KATIE FAIRBANK / The Dallas Morning News

Socialite Shannon Murchison died of acute bacterial meningitis that spread throughout her system, according to a report released Monday by the Dallas County medical examiner's office.
Shannon Murchison

The meningitis was due to a strain of listeria, bacteria that can be found in food poisoning, investigators concluded. Her illness was compounded by liver failure probably caused by acetaminophen, the active ingredient in Tylenol and other medications.

"The liver failure was very dramatic," said chief medical examiner Jeffrey Barnard. "It is likely that she took a pretty good amount of acetaminophen."

The death was ruled accidental rather than natural due to the probable use of acetaminophen, Dr. Barnard said.

Mrs. Murchison, 47, the former wife of Clint Murchison III, was declared brain dead April 28 after a couple of days on life support. An autopsy was ordered in part because she had reported to police on April 19 that she had suffered a black eye and extensive bruising. The circumstances of her illness and death shocked many in Highland Park, raising questions among friends and fueling gossip.

Dr. Barnard said the bruising to Mrs. Murchison's eye was a traumatic injury but that it "played no role in her death." He said he could not determine what caused the injury.Other bruising could have occurred because her blood clotting ability was impaired by her illness and liver failure, he said.

[Fridays Child]

1. When she reported her black eye and bruises to the police...

...who, or what, did she say caused them?

[Pachamama]

2. She woke up one morning and had bruising-wasn't sure where it came from or

how happened.

I don't know all the full details...I know her sister is quite upset still...not just over her death and the suddeness, but the strange circumstances.

Shannon had a history of drinking problems...it wouldn't have been inconceivable for her to have fallen after drinking...however, bruising is a symptom too from liver failure (which was happening to her from the Tylenol use). On the other hand, she and her ex-husband had a lot of problems, so there has been a lot of speculation about "what really happened"....

This story kind of sweeps the story up and says it was an "accident" and it quotes one of her sisters as saying its "tragic" but my friend is one of her other sisters and she is quite disturbed by the circumstances and still feels like there are a lot of unanswered questions....

[Rene]

5. Liver failure / Tylenol

My cousin (49) died from a major stroke 7 years ago. Turned out that her liver was destroyed from taking Tylenol every day. She'd had a small stroke, rushed by ambulance to the hospital...but was dismissed from the hospital before all the tests came back, and were read by any doctors, that showed her liver counts were w a y off....
A day later, at home, she had a massive bleeding stroke....brain surgery....but didn't make it - they turned off life support.
Gladdie was a social drinker.....wine with dinner every nite...cocktails at parties. Not a heavy drinker though.

We learned that alcohol and tylenol are ruinous to the liver....too late.

She was trying to quit smoking and took the tylenol apparently because she felt so awful for weeks/months. Her husband remembers that she'd take 4 pills before she'd go to sleep each nite and more during the day.

[Pachamama]

6. People often think "OTC" medications are safe...far from it...

It is always amazing to me the assumption people make about so-called "over-the-counter OTC" meds and just assume that they are safer than prescription drugs. I know so many people who take Advil, Tylenol etc. daily and don't realize the liver or kidney damage etc. it can cause, especially if other conditions exist.

I'm sorry about your cousin...49 is much too young to die of a stroke...My friends sister Shannon was only 47....amazing to think people so young could be dying like this...

I didn't realize Alchohol and Tylenol could be such dangerous combos...imagine how many people consider themselves "social drinkers" and then have a hang-over the next day after going to a party etc. and take Tylenol for the headaches...

I confess that I'm even wary of giving the Pachababies Children's Tylenol when they have a fever....My theory is the body has "fevers" to fight bacteria etc. in the body and best to let a fever "run its course" and do nature's work. I will closely monitor my kids temp, give them lots of fluids and only give Tylenol when it looks like the fever is going over 102-103. I have found that 9 times out of 10, the fever goes down on its own and they are fine. If you think about it, if the body has a fever to "kill" an invading bacteria for example, then taking something that "lowers" your bodies temp and its bacteria-fighting attempt, how is that helping?

Anyway, I think that the lesson in all of this is that we need to always treat OTC meds as very serious drugs and use only rarely and to make sure that no other conditions or adverse combinations exist.

I wonder if my friends sister, if she had gone to a doctor for the headaches instead of popping the Tylenols, would have been tested and they could have given her antibiotics for the listeria and meningitis and her life could have been saved. I'll admit, I hate going to the doctor, but it makes one realize that it isn't such a silly thing to go and insist on a blood test etc. to determine and rule out other possibilities.

[Skittles]

3. thank you for this update

I had read about her and I wondered what happened to her

[Pachamama]

4. It's definitely a bizarre story....Listeria is a common bacteria in food

poisoning and I had no idea it could lead to bacterial meningitis...I remember when I was pregnant being told not to eat unpasteurized cheeses (especially when I was traveling to France & Europe while pregnant) and not to eat deli meats etc. because of the risk of Listeria. It causes miscarriages if it gets into your system and your pregnant.

Your in Texas, and you know the little "High society" stories of the folks there...this story and sadly her not so private private life have had a lot of weird twists and turns.

I just think that this story is so sad, so bizarre and like I said, I just "feel" like there is something else there....

You have to admit...if this wasn't an "accident" and made to look like one, it was the perfect crime...here's a woman with a history of alcholism and erratic behaviour where it would be real easy to make it seem that she a) was drinking (and fell and therefore the unexplained bruising; b) that it was a case of food poisoning and her taking lots of Tylenol for the headaches caused by the meningitis and then dying of it and liver failure....

Maybe I'm wrong...I just know my friend is very upset and still feels that there are a lot of unanswered questions in her opinion...

They never did find the "source" of the Listeria poisoning..

[ebayfool]

7. It is strange that someone who ostensibly (socialite?) had access to

health care would have just taken Tylenol & not something stronger. I've had meningitis & the headache (& neck pain) that comes w/it is NOT something you would take Tylenol for if you had recourse for medical alternatives. It's extreme - & OTC doesn't touch it. If she was a drinker, then I would also assume she had no problems w/medicating. So it is very off that she would settle for Tylenol for the amount of discomfort she had to have been feeling. The bruising - any idea where it was located or concentrated? The black eye alone makes you automatically wonder, when I fall down I don't generally lead w/my eye - my butt, my head, my back ... you tend to lead w/something else first, before your eye. It might be coincidence, but I think it's reasonable for her sister & you to have some doubts. I feel for your friend, it's so hard to lose a loved one at such a young age.

[Skittles]

8. I think what got to me about this gal

is it showed that money and status do not protect one at all against extreme hurt and addiction - a very human story is this. I remember thinking what a dick her ex was. Not sure what to think about her death but I bet there will be a book about it and it would make for an interesting read.

Do you know how her children are doing?

[Pachamama]

9. They only had one child together - a daughter who is 6 years old

He had kids from a prior marriage I believe, but they had only one child together...a little girl named Coco...

I don't know all the details, but there was a really ugly divorce and custody battle over the daughter....he got custody (I think because of her drinking) and it apparantely devastated her....her daughter was her life...I asked her sister how the child is doing...she is ofcourse with the Dad...she says okay, but imagine a little girl at 6 losing her Mom...

And your right - it goes to show that no amount of money protects someone from extreme hurt and addiction...in fact, in some ways it makes it worse. The so-called "high society" of Dallas is an extreme pressure cooker. I hate it. I disdain it in fact. I have friends there and when I have visited Dallas and go to places in Highland Park or to the "Petroleum Club", I do everything I can to not be throwing up on what I see and hear. Most of the women there that I have met, and this is no exageration, are like Pickles...they are on Xanax, Prozac or lots of cocktails to take the edge off of their husbands neglect and constant affairs. They are usually self-loathing of their body images and are constantly concerned about their looks etc. Not the world I want to live in. Sad, really. I live in an area that is high income, but different from that world. I have neighbors like Barbara Boxer and Sean Penn. Or people who may have inherited money, but you would never know it and are very balanced. That's not to say there isn't groups of people who are trying real hard and "nouveau riche" but its different here. I go to the same Dentist as Bob Weir (Grateful Dead) and we'll be sitting in the Dentist office together and talking about the Rainforest, Music and kids. Different atmosphere from Highland Park, Dallas....

[Skittles]

12. I live in Plano, right on top of Dallas

I've known a few of those women and their so-called happiness often seems very forced to me. I've never been envious of people because I don't think anyone ever really has it "easy" in this world - you never know what's going on behind closed doors, ya know?

[ngGale]

10. This is very sad and bizarre...

The bacterium usually causes septicema and meningitis in patients with supressed immune function.
__________snip___________________

Did she have an immune problem? She would have had symptoms that should have been noticed. Or, she could have only had flu like symptoms.
My problem is not finding the "source." Other people should have been sick - most cases are traced. With a case resulting in death and being a high profile person, one would think answers would be searched for and found.

I'm really sorry and feel very sad for her family and friends. I can identify with not being able to understand. Not even knowing her, I don't understand either. It is very bizarre. Has "West Nile Virus" been ruled out? Just one of my thoughts.

[Sgent]

11. We don't know how heavy

a drinker she was. Alcholhol + Tylonol = Formaldahyde, one of the most deadly substances known to man. Our valient liver tries to filter it out, and usually does, but occassionally loses. If she was a heavy drinker she may have been having liver trouble before she saturated it with so much tylonol, it could also explain a weakened immune system. Finally, maybe she thought she had a really bad hangover...

As for OTC meds, please read and pay attention to the labels on the box of drugs -- they are there for a reason. For instance, there is the "do not mix with alcholol" on Tylonal. On Aadvil there is the "See a doctor if taken regularly for more than 14 days". There are reasons for these warnings, the FDA didn't require them to be arbitrary.