New info about Michael Jackson and I have a question for any doctors or people who would kow.

[Maraya1969]

It says here that they found out that his heart doctor gave him the fatal dose and that he wold give it to him every night, (that's what I got from reading it).

My question is, "Does the person administering it stay awake the whole time Michael is asleep? I remember going out for a couple minor surgeries and I was told that as soon as they stoped giving me the drug I would just wake up.


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Report: Doc Gave Jackson Fatal Drug

By THOMAS WATKINS

posted: 5 HOURS 47 MINUTES AGO
comments: 340
filed under: Music News
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(July 27) – Michael Jackson's personal doctor administered a powerful anesthetic to help him sleep, and authorities believe the drug killed the pop singer, a law enforcement official told The Associated Press on Monday.
The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because the investigation is ongoing, also provided a glimpse inside Jackson's rented mansion, describing the room Jackson slept in as outfitted with oxygen tanks and an IV drip. Another of his bedrooms was a shambles, with clothes and other items strewn about and handwritten notes stuck on the walls. One read: "children are sweet and innocent."

The official said Jackson regularly received propofol to sleep, relying on the drug like an alarm clock. A doctor would administer it when he went to sleep, then stop the intravenous drip when he wanted to wake up. On June 25, the day Jackson died, Dr. Conrad Murray gave him the drug through an IV sometime after midnight, the official said.
Though toxicology reports are pending, investigators are working under the theory propofol caused Jackson's heart to stop, the official said. Jackson is believed to have been using the drug for about two years and investigators are trying to determine how many other doctors administered it, the official said.

Murray, 51, has been identified in court papers as the subject of a manslaughter investigation and authorities last week raided his office and a storage unit in Houston. Police say Murray is cooperating and have not labeled him a suspect.
Using propofol to sleep is a practice far outside the drug's intended purpose. One doctor said administering it in a home to help a person sleep would constitute malpractice.
Murray's lawyer, Edward Chernoff, has said the doctor "didn't prescribe or administer anything that should have killed Michael Jackson." When asked Monday about the law enforcement official's statements he said: "We will not be commenting on rumors, innuendo or unnamed sources."
Murray became Jackson's personal physician in May and was to accompany him to London for a series of concerts starting in July.
He was staying with Jackson in the Los Angeles mansion and, according to Chernoff, "happened to find" an unconscious Jackson in the pop star's bedroom the morning of June 25. Murray tried to revive him by compressing his chest with one hand while supporting Jackson's back with the other.

There is a video at the site that I did not listen to.

http://www.popeater.com/music/article/michael-jackson-doctor-deadly-dose/590870

[ThirdWorldJohn]

1. He probably did stay awake the whole time. One cc too much can kill.

So he should have stayed to monitor Jackson. It was being given by a IV drip. Jackson was found with the IV still in place. So he was sleeping as the drug was being absorbed into his vein continually, Also that drug can only be legally administered in a hospital.

[Maraya1969]

2. So he had a doctor by his side every night at least in the period before his death

I've heard rumors of murder charges. I don't see how anyone can get away with at least manslaughter.

[Heidi]

3. Dunno whether it's true, but I've read that IV administration this drug should be monitored

by EKG and pulse oximeter, and neither was found in Jackson's home. From what I've read, an EKG and pulse oximeter would have alerted the attending doctor that Jackson's pulse/breathing had dropped/slowed to a dangerous level.

I'm not a doctor or nurse. This is just what I've read

[eilen]

4. Any ethical medical personnel would have told Michael Jackson

"NO Fucking Way are you getting this drug."

I'm sure he had been given this advice at some point. That doctor was either desperate or also a junkie.

[rox63]

5. This drug should only administered by an anesthesiologist or nurse-anesthetist

And the patient should be hooked up to machines that measured their heart rate, breathing rate and blood oxygen levels.

Murray was not qualifed to administer the drug, and simply sitting by the patient is not good enough monitoring. If Murray didn't know this, he's an idiot.

Edit to add: I am not a doctor, just a health-care student. But even I know this, so a real live doctor should know it as well.

[Heidi]

8. And if Murray didn't know that the drug is NOT approved for off-label use to treat

insomnia, he was negligent, in my opinion. I find it very difficult to believe Murray wouldn't know this. Dunno whether it's true, but I've read that Dr. Murray was being paid $150,000 per month to live with Jackson and be his personal physician for the upcoming tour. :(

[Heidi]

6. Here's a very interesting blog entry about Diprivan® by a pharmocologist/toxicologist.

(Bold emphasis mine.)

While it is indeed a sedative, it has been reported to produce euphoria (the pleasant feelings of well-being most often associated with morphine and other opioids) in some people who have procured it for the purposes of clandestine use.

The potential risk is from "propofol-related infusion syndrome" - it can produce an elevation in body temperature that is usually not fatal (not "true" malignant hyperthermia as with the rare but fatal side effect of some inhaled anesthetics) but can trigger muscle breakdown called rhabdomyolysis, a rare but devastating side effect that can also occur with statin cholesterol-lowering drugs.

An excellent and timely review of propofol-related infusion syndrome was published in the May issue of Pharmacotherapy by Dr Stephanie Mallow-Corbett and colleagues from the University of Houston College of Pharmacy. The article is reprinted at Medscape (available with free registration). Most notable in this review is that while the syndrome is rare, it is fatal in 64% of cases when it does occur.

However, most relevant to the Jackson case is that propofol can cause cardiac tachyarrhythmias (rhythmic disturbances at high heart rate), especially in people predisposed to cardiac problems.

However - and please note - that while all of my pharmacology/toxicology discussion is based in science and medicine, any extrapolation to the Michael Jackson case and the cause of his death is speculation at this point. I only have access to the reports regarding his potential drug exposure that all of you do. Only time will tell what is the truth once the full autopsy and toxicology reports are released.

Read more here
About the blogger

And remember this Related ABC News article?

[rox63]

7. This medication is not meant to be used long-term

It's an anesthetic, meant only for short term use. The only places I've seen it used for longer periods is with patients on ventilators. Some patients on ventilators get agitated and try to self-extubate, which can be more dangerous than the drug. These are patients who are are generally already in a life-threatening situation, and who are hooked up to a lot of monitoring equipment.

[Heidi]

9. That's my understanding, too.

But the fact that it's not a controlled substance may account for why Dr. Murray was able to prescribe it when he's not licensed in California to prescribe controlled substances. :shrug:

[Maraya1969]

10. It's hard to believe that it is not a controlled substance.

[WolverineDG]

11. Says a lot that they had a heart doctor there

and not an anethesiologist (really misspelled). They probably all said "No f'in way."

on edit: I'm not a doctor, just someone who's "gone under" a couple of times & has had lengthy discussions with ane--whoozits.

dg

[Corgigal]

12. TMZ is reporting

Yeah I know it's TMZ but they have been right on these issues, that Dr. Murray fell asleep. MJ was dead over 2 1/3 hours before 911 was called and the Medics wanted him pronounced at the scene. Medics also saw signs of beginning rigor. Dr. Murray wouldn't let them, nor would he sign the death certificate. CPR wouldn't have made a difference, which is why the Dr allowed MJ body to stay on the bed.

I'm a EMS tech, just for background info.