What Might MJ Toxicology Report Show?
The Los Angeles coroner is expected to release the results of the toxicology studies that were part of Michael Jackson's autopsy sometime this week.
What might the findings be?
It's believed the pop icon may have been taking more than a dozen drugs at the time of his death, CBS News medical correspondent Dr. Jennifer Ashton said on "The Early Show" Monday.
Ashton says the release of the toxicology report should finally make clear whether a combination of those drugs killed Jackson.
The report should pinpoint which drugs were found in his body, how much, and if they caused his death.
Dr. Lawrence Kobilinsky, of John Jay College of Criminal Justice, said, "My guess is we'll find multiple drugs -- it's the synergistic effect of all these drugs together -- that caused this respiratory problem."
Ashton said Jackson is said to have been taking painkillers Demerol and Vicodin, as well as antidepressants Zoloft, Paxil, Xanax, and the muscle relaxant Soma.
However, the prime suspect among the drugs that may have contributed to Jackson's death, Ashton said, is Diprivan, a powerful sedative used in hospitals to put patients under. Several bottles of the drug reportedly were found in Jackson's rented mansion.
Paul Wischmeyer, a professor of anesthesiology, said, "It's complete madness that anyone would use this drug outside of a very controlled operating room or hospital setting. If you make a small error on how much you give yourself ... you might go from being high to being dead."
Diprivan's potency can be affected by other drugs, according to Ashton. So, if Jackson was also on painkillers and sedatives, she said, the combination could have been fatal.
Cherilyn Lee, Jackson's former nurse told CBS News all Jackson wanted to do was sleep. "But he was in trouble," she said, adding Jackson wanted to use Diprivan to treat his insomnia.
But according to Wischmeyer, the possibility Diprivan was being used for sleep is "madness. It's like using a cannon to shoot a mouse."
The toxicology report, Ashton said, may determine if charges will be brought against Jackson's personal physician when he died, Dr. Conrad Murray, or any of his other doctors. Murray was there when Jackson passed away.
Kobilinsky says Diprivan may be a "smoking gun" and what happened "very well may border on criminal activity."