Dr. Kapoor: Methadone OK for Pregnant Anna

A lawyer for the doctor who prescribed drugs to Anna Nicole Smith in the late stages of her pregnancy says giving methadone to Smith was "medically sound and appropriate."

The lawyer for Dr. Sandeep Kapoor responded to allegations of medical misconduct today in a statement to TMZ, saying, in part, "Medical research and protocols confirm that methadone is approved for use by pregnant patients." According to the US Department of Health and Human Services, methadone treatment for pregnant women can "save [a] baby's life" and can "allow [one] to regain...quality of life." The government also says that using methadone while pregnant "will not cause birth defects for [a] baby."

The lawyer also defended the doctor's use of an alias for Smith's methadone prescription, explaining, "The media frenzy surrounding Smith's life and tragic death underscores why public figures may choose to use pseudonyms in order to protect the privacy of their medical treatment."

Kapoor's attorney didn't discuss the specifics of his treatment of Anna Nicole, citing the confidentiality of medical records, saying only that the "treatment program for Anna Nicole Smith was at all times medically sound and appropriate."

According to the statement, Kapoor "will cooperate with any inquiries by the Medical Board of California," which said yesterday that it would investigate the doctor's prescribing Smith's drugs to an alias. Kapoor's lawyer also says he is "saddened" by Anna's death and offers his condolences to her family.



Filed under: Anna Nicole Smith

Reader Comments

(Page 3 of 20)Previous 15 Comments | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | Most Recent | Next 15 Comments

31. i agree with #6 and i do also think she ran to the bahamas because if that baby was born here in the states that child would have been taken away.

Posted at 6:46PM on Feb 16th 2007 by natalie

32. Are you f**king kidding me? lol Yeah, only if this was Puppetmaster Howard K. Stern paying off this quack to say such a thing, it could be "okay".

As I type this, I'm watching one of those idiotic ambulance-chaser local lawyer TV ads (you know, the type you see during daytime talk shows, like Edgar Synder on Erie locals). This one says if you are, or you know a pregnant woman who took Paxil (GSK) and that baby was born with birth defects (!!!), you should call this number on the screen for a class-action lawsuit. PAXIL, PEOPLE!!! And this doctor's saying it's okay to take Methadone while pregnant? Nuh-uh.

Seriously...... time to stick it to the greedy, faceless drug co.'s. And speaking of daytime talk shows... WTF's the deal w/ sell-out Montel Williams shilling that scam PPA "program" sponsored by above-mentioned drug companies?

Posted at 6:47PM on Feb 16th 2007 by Jacob Kasza (jacobkasza)

33. oops i meant CAN'T get drugs using an assumed name because it's illegal!

Posted at 6:49PM on Feb 16th 2007 by natalie

34. lol #32.. #14 seems like a weirdo. did u read her post?

Posted at 6:52PM on Feb 16th 2007 by natalie

35. One more thing. We all seen her actions on TV. Her tounge would get so hard "Sthee Couldun't thalk"!!! In my opinion, any Doctor that didn't try to stop her and continued to give her scripts for this medication should face involuntary manslaughter, to include that leech trying to get her money..You know who the hell you are.. Hell awaits every damn one of you!

Mid AKA: HellsQuarter

Posted at 6:53PM on Feb 16th 2007 by Bill

36. My question that hasn't been answered= was this doctor her OB/GYN provider or did she someone else and only used this doc as her Dr Feelgood. Being such an opiate addict demands large amounts of prescriptions. Who wrote those?

Posted at 6:53PM on Feb 16th 2007 by my opinion

37. THE PDA lists methadone a catagory C drug.
1. This medication may be harmful to an unborn baby.
It can cause addition or withdrawal symptoms if a mother takes methadone during pregnancy.
2. Methadone can be passed in breast milk.
3. What do they call the doctor who graduates last in his medical class? Doctor.

Posted at 6:55PM on Feb 16th 2007 by Paul

38. lol You for real, #14.? On Methadone for your entire pregnancy?

Were you _also_ one of those "mothers" who wrapped her in a plastic garbage bag and put her in a box and to rest in a garbage dumpster after you gave birth to your "healthy" baby?

Yeah, I bet Anna gave birth in the Bahamas due to the laxed laws over there for careless mothers giving birth with lesser consequences.

Posted at 7:00PM on Feb 16th 2007 by Jacob Kasza (jacobkasza)

39. #'s 22 and 17...first of all...that is rediculous to say that she went out of the country to deliver so that the baby wouldn't be taken away from her...She was legally PRESCRIBED the MEDICATION. If she was on herion, and delivered the baby with that in her system, then yes they would take the baby away. There are babies born everyday to mothers on methadone. Are all u people that ignorant to the subject? If you are stop posting on subjects you know nothing about. If the doctor prescribed her the methadone for a reason other than it's use, then the doctor is negligent, they aren't going to take her baby away. Now to Natalie who asked "Why would I wanna take methadone?"...You wouldn't want to take methadone. Some people medically should, have to, is the lesser of two evils. If you were a drug addict addicted to opiates, found out that you were pregnant, you would want to take methadone. I'll say this again, withdrawing from opiates while pregnant can result in death for the fetus. Maintaining on methadone while pregnant is the lesser of two evils. Do I want to see any newborn withdrawing for methadone, god no, I know first hand what that's like. The point here is that there could be more trauma to the baby WITHOUT the methadone. 60% of babies born to mothers on methadone are born with out withdrawals. My heart breaks for the 40% that do...but I would rather my child go through withdrawals for 2 weeks then have birth defects because I was using heroin or popping 100 pills a day. There is NO evidence that supports methadone cause any kind of birth defects or damage to a baby. Anna was a drug addict. Addiction is a disease. She wasn't strong enough to get help. Honestly if I lived her life, I wouldn't either. I don't want to even think about the pain of losing a child. Stop trying to condemn her. NO ONE knows the whole story, including myself. All we know is what the media wants us to see. Just remember that. Don't be so quick to judge. No one knows what its like to be anyone else unless they've walked in their shoes.

Posted at 7:02PM on Feb 16th 2007 by Jen

40. Jacob Kasza how dear you make that comment to #14. You are one of the ignorant idiots I've been talking about that needs to educate your self on the subject. You have NO IDEA what you are talking about. You are a moron who should be insulted that he just left that post.

Posted at 7:06PM on Feb 16th 2007 by Jen

41. NATALIE - Oh my goodness! Please KNOW methadone is actually BETTER for you while you're pregnant than aspirin which is confirmed to cause fetal death.
I hope you either 1- don't have kids or 2- will remember this when you do

Posted at 7:08PM on Feb 16th 2007 by Disbelief

42. naked ann nichole from paramedics video cell phone

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-4427358201227890862&q=hillary+code+pink&hl=en

Posted at 7:14PM on Feb 16th 2007 by Reeko

43. Natalie, You have no clue what you are talking about...#14 sounds like a weirdo, have you read your own posts?

Posted at 7:15PM on Feb 16th 2007 by Mortified

44. lol #41 methadone being better for you? get real lol

Posted at 7:15PM on Feb 16th 2007 by natalie

45. you have to remember that the choice between her being on methadone to kick a killer drug addiction was a lot healther for her while pregnant than her going into withdrawls and being so sick and causing the baby stress. You see people withdrawing, its physical pain and they go psycho...she would have ended up hitting the drugs hard while preg. without the methadone.

Posted at 7:17PM on Feb 16th 2007 by chelsea

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