Prince's autopsy, toxicology tests may resolve uncertainties

Determining whether the music superstar died of a drug overdose will likely involve not only tests of his blood, urine, liver tissue and fluid from the eyes, it also will require compiling evidence from Prince's medicine cabinet, his medical history and possibly information from witnesses and those who knew him.

The Midwest Medical Examiner's Office did not release a preliminary cause of death based on the autopsy alone and has said the toxicology results would take weeks.

[...] basic screens are run on blood and urine to detect categories such as opiates, amphetamines, marijuana, alcohol and barbiturates.

The autopsy report will help clarify whether Prince had a medical issue such as a heart problem that might explain his death, said Dr. Paul Wax, executive director of the American College of Medical Toxicology.

"If he didn't have some other medical condition, then was there enough evidence based on the forensic toxicology testing and other information from pill bottles, family, friends and eyewitnesses to suggest that the death was from drugs?" Wax asked.

Death certificates sometimes include mention of "polysubstance abuse" — abuse of three or more drugs — or "substance abuse" or perhaps "drug use disorder," Wax said.

Minnesota law gives medical examiners broad authority to access a deceased person's medical records, including those on mental health and chemical dependency.

The state allows medical examiners to include references to mental health records in a final summary report, but shields the records themselves from public disclosure.

According to a 2009 (Minneapolis) Star Tribune article, Strobl is a native of Philadelphia who attended Penn State and the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine.

Autopsy reports usually include a cause of death such as "opioid poisoning" or "congestive heart failure" and a manner of death, such as "homicide," ''suicide," ''accident" or "undetermined."

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