Stories have surfaced claiming that Michael Jackson, who died an apparent victim of cardiac arrest, was seeking powerful sedatives to help him with insomnia. A story in the LA Times states that Jackson had reportedly requested that a nurse who was connected with his “This Is It” tour give him the powerful drug Diprivan, also known as Propofol, to help him with his inability to sleep.

What is disturbing about this story is that Diprivan must be given intravenously, meaning that someone would have to inject him with the drug, which is not available in oral form. The drug is often given in settings where anaesthesia is required. It is also used in intensive care units to sedate patients who are often ventilated by machines that do their breathing for them.

It is rumoured that Diprivan and Lidocaine, a numbing agent that might have been used to make the injection of Diprivan more comfortable, were found in the entertainer’s home. Officials will have to wait for autopsy reports to determine if the drug was actually present in Jackson’s body.

If the drug is found in Jackson’s body, determining who administered the drug will be of paramount importance. Generally, patients who are administered Diprivan must be monitored closely, including blood pressure and respirations, as the drug can cause a person to quit breathing. If this turns out to be the case in Michael Jackson’s death, whoever administered the drug may be found criminally negligent. At the very least, whoever gave the entertainer the drug could face suspension of their license, as Diprivan is a drug that should not have been administered in the singer’s home, without proper medical supervision.

Full autopsy results are not expected for several weeks. The family of Michael Jackson requested that their own separate autopsy be performed, citing questions they have surrounding the death.

Related Links:

Celebrity Drug Overdoses from Health Guru

King of Pop Suffers a Cardiac Arrest, Dies at Age 50 from Health Guru

Why We Worship Celebrities from Health Guru