Propofol: the drug that may have killed Michael Jackson
Wednesday, 26 August 2009
PARIS, Aug 25, 2009 (AFP) - Propofol, the drug which reportedly killed pop star Michael Jackson two months ago, is a fast-acting hospital sedative, administered intravenously and used as a precursor for anaesthesia.
The drug, made by the pharmaceutical giant AstraZeneca, is also sold under the brand name of Diprivan.
According to court documents released on Tuesday in Houston, Texas, Jackson was killed by a powerful cocktail of drugs in which Propofol was the fatal ingredient.
Francois Chast, head of the pharmacology department at Paris’s Hotel-Dieu Hospital, said Propofol was extremely powerful and not at all intended for use outside clinical settings.
“Propofol should have no business being in a house unless it happens to be equipped with an operating theatre,” Chast said.
The drug is administered either by intravenous drip or by injector ahead of anaesthesia or to keep the patient anaesthetised during an operation.
The drug, made by the pharmaceutical giant AstraZeneca, is also sold under the brand name of Diprivan.
According to court documents released on Tuesday in Houston, Texas, Jackson was killed by a powerful cocktail of drugs in which Propofol was the fatal ingredient.
Francois Chast, head of the pharmacology department at Paris’s Hotel-Dieu Hospital, said Propofol was extremely powerful and not at all intended for use outside clinical settings.
“Propofol should have no business being in a house unless it happens to be equipped with an operating theatre,” Chast said.
The drug is administered either by intravenous drip or by injector ahead of anaesthesia or to keep the patient anaesthetised during an operation.