Estimated read time: 2-3 minutes
This archived news story is available only for your personal, non-commercial use. Information in the story may be outdated or superseded by additional information. Reading or replaying the story in its archived form does not constitute a republication of the story.
Ed Yeates reportingThe autopsy report on actor Heath Ledger is drawing more attention to a campaign called "Zero Unintentional Deaths." Utah physician Dr. Lynn Webster is the driving force behind that project. He says Ledger's death is but an example of what some call an epidemic.
Dr. Webster said, "Unfortunately, what's happened to Heath is becoming increasingly more common. I believe it's become a crisis."
Dr. Lynn Webster speaks of unintentional death - taking a combination of prescription drugs which by themselves and in the right dose may help - but when used in combination with other medications can kill.
Heath Ledger's recipe was a bad one. The interaction between the already potent drugs produced acute intoxication.
"Pain relievers like opiates, and anxiolytics like valium, as well as sleep aides, you add all this together for somebody who is otherwise healthy, it can be lethal," Dr. Webster said.
The advice hasn't changed. Patients combining prescription drugs to treat different ailments should always talk to their physician or a pharmacist about possible interactions.
"People think often that it's just like taking another ibuprofen or aspirin," Webster said.
Zero Unintentional Deaths is designed to educate physicians, patients and families about potential risks when you try to mix and match.
Webster explains, "Unless you know whether that drug can have an additive or synergistic, which means one plus one can equal five, that's what I mean by synergistic effect, you're really self-medicating and assuming a great deal of risk."
Some drugs can backfire. For example, taking extra sleeping pills or combining them with an antihistamine might trigger a different kind of fatigue that actually prevents restorative sleep. It's unfortunate, Dr. Webster says, that it takes the death of a prominent actor like Ledger to focus the spotlight on something that affects all of us.
