Prince had ‘exceedingly high’ concentration of prescription drug fentanyl in his body when he died
A confidential toxicology report has revealed for the first time exactly how much of the chemical was in Prince's system
PRINCE had an "exceedingly high" concentration of the prescription drug fentanyl in his body when he died, it's been revealed.
The musician was 57 when he was took an accidental overdose of the synthetic opioid, which is 50 times more powerful than heroin.
But a confidential toxicology report from the star's autopsy, obtained by the Associated Press, has revealed for the first time exactly how much of the chemical was in his system.
Experts who are not connected to the Prince investigation said the numbers leave no doubt that fentanyl killed him in April 2016.
Dr Lewis Nelson, chairman of emergency medicine at Rutgers New Jersey Medical School, said: “The amount in his blood is exceedingly high, even for somebody who is a chronic pain patient on fentanyl patches."
He called the concentrations of the drug “a pretty clear smoking gun.”
The report says the concentration of fentanyl in Prince’s blood was 67.8 micrograms per litre.
The report explains that fatalities have been documented in people with blood levels ranging from 3 to 58 micrograms per litre.
The report also says the level of fentanyl in Prince’s liver was 450 micrograms per kilogram, and notes that liver concentrations greater than 69 micrograms per kilogram “seem to represent overdose or fatal toxicity cases.”
There was also what experts called a potentially lethal amount of fentanyl in Prince’s stomach.
Dr Charles McKay, president of the American College of Medical Toxicology, said generally speaking, the findings suggest Prince took the drug orally, while fentanyl in the blood and liver suggest it had some time to circulate before he died.
Experts say there is no “lethal level” at which fentanyl can kill and a person who takes prescription opioids for a long time builds up a tolerance - a dose that could kill one person might help another.
Search warrants released about a year after Prince’s death showed authorities found numerous pills in various containers around his home.
A lab report shows many of the pills tested positive for fentanyl and other drugs.
Information that has been released publicly indicates the source of those drugs hasn’t been determined.
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Last week, the lead prosecutor in the county where Prince died said in a statement that he was reviewing law enforcement reports and would make a decision on whether to charge anyone “in the near future.”
Since December 2016, the drug has been linked to 60 deaths in the UK.
A ten-year-old schoolboy is believed to be one of the youngest victims of the drug epidemic.
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