Could Demerol Overdsoe Cause Jackson's Cardiac Arrest?

A member of the family of Michael Jackson, or more precisely his lawyer (according to The Sun) has revealed that a high dose of morphine was injected a few hours before the death of the singer. In addition, Joe Jackson, the elder brother of Michael, tried to convince him to enroll in a rehabilitation program on several occasions. Joe told The Sun that he was very concerned about the habits of painkiller use by his brother. Recently frail Michael was heavily relying on painkillers to relieve pain while preparing his comeback and UK concert tour.

The British magazine reported yesterday that the King of Pop would have succumbed to an overdose of Demerol, a potent pain medication. "Doctors prescribe Demerol because it is deemed safer than morphine and its side effects aren't considered as bad," writes The Sun.

The report writes that Michael has collapsed a few minutes after the injection of a high dose of Demerol. Distributed only on prescription, the drug is intended to allay the serious physical pain.

We can not verify this information by now. The preliminary results of the autopsy will be performed on the body of Michael Jackson in the next few hours in Los Angeles. However, during his trial where he had to defend himself against the accusations of pedophilia, investigators had seized several syringes filled with Demerol at the ranch of the singer.

Drugs and stress for the tour

The magazine "Life & Style" for its part says that the star has been prescribed in the last months a cocktail of drugs, ranging from Xanax (anxiolytic) to Demerol and Zoloft (an antidepressant). At 50 years, the King of Pop was obviously very stressed by his upcoming return on stage in London this summer, where no fewer than 50 concerts were planned. The tour had been delayed, the organizers ensure that it had "nothing to do with the health of the star.

A path of self-destruction

Jackson's family lawyer Brian Oxman has denounced that the alleged physical overwork before the upcoming concert tour may have played part in Jackson's health. Michael Jackson was led by Lou Ferrigno, aka the Incredible Hulk. "I think the stress, anticipation and passion came from his heart, wanting to make a successful come-back, have won the battle over his health. (...) Maybe the stress has killed, that's what I think," said to BBC Uri Geller, a close friend of Michael Jackson, who lives near London.

Several of his relatives were apparently not surprised by the death of Michael Jackson, whose health was a cause of concern for a number of years. "I must confess that I was not surprised by the tragic news today," said one of his former spokesman, Michael Levine. "Michael has followed a path incredibly difficult and often self-destructive for years. His talent was undeniable, but his discomfort vis-à-vis the rules of this world (was) too. A human can not sustain this level of stress."

Sources
7Jours.ca
The Sun
Life and Style
20minutes.fr