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Milosevic May Have Tried to Get to Moscow NewsMax.com Wires THE HAGUE, Netherlands -- A Dutch toxicologist said Monday he found traces of an unprescribed drug in Slobodan Milosevic's blood earlier this year that may have reduced the effectiveness of other medications he was taking. Donald Uges told The Associated Press that he found traces of rifampicin, a drug that "makes the liver extremely active." "If you're taking something (another medication) it breaks down very quickly," Uges said. Uges suggested Milosevic may have taken such action in a bid to be released from jail and get medical attention in Russia - by portraying his Dutch doctors as unable to treat his condition. "First he wasn't taking his medicine. Then he was forced to take it under supervision and his blood pressure still didn't come down. So his camp said, 'You see, these Dutch doctors don't know how to treat him and he should go to Russia," Uges said. Story Continues Below
Milosevic, 64, was being treated for a chronic heart problem. Doctors who examined him at the detention center diagnosed him as having hypertension, or high blood pressure, and hypertrophic heart disease, a thickening of the heart muscle. U.N.-appointed doctors examined Milosevic last November and initially concluded he had been refusing to take his prescribed medicine, since the blood pressure was not responding. Under orders of the judges, Milosevic was then required to take his medicine under supervision, but the "pressure still didn't come down," said Uges, from University Hospital of Groningen. He said the Dutch doctors concluded after a Jan. 12 examination that the most likely explanation was that Milosevic was taking another drug that counteracted his blood pressure medication. Milosevic, who asked the court in December to be released to travel to Russia for treatment, contested the doctors' opinion and the court asked Uges to conduct a more sophisticated test. Uges said he conducted the tests two weeks ago on a sample taken earlier this year. But he said his investigation - performed initially without knowledge of who the patient was - confirmed the doctors' earlier findings. He said the results of the toxicological tests during the post-mortem would determine whether the traces were still in Milosevic's blood at the time of death. On Feb. 24, judges denied Milosevic's request to be released to go to Moscow. Even with guarantees from the Russian government that it would send Milosevic back to The Hague, judges were "not satisfied ... that the accused, if released, would return for the continuation of his trial," presiding Judge Patrick Robinson said at the time. Rifampicin, an antibiotic, is usually used to treat leprosy and tuberculosis. It is sold under various trade names, most commonly as Rifadin. It is known for causing liver problems, and for increasing the metabolism - or processing - of many drugs through the liver. Uges said he couldn't disclose details of Milosevic's routine medicines, but said they contained a cocktail of drugs commonly used to treat heart disease, including the class of drugs that lower blood pressure known as "beta blockers." Milosevic had a history of clashing with the court over his treatment. In a Sept. 2004 decision relating to Milosevic's refusal to accept a court-appointed lawyer, judges mentioned that Dutch doctors suspected he was tampering with his medication. Doctors found then that the level of "Metoprolol" - a beta blocker Milosevic had been prescribed - were strangely low. Doctors also detected unprescribed anti-anxiety drugs, although Milosevic denied taking such medication.
© 2006 Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. Editor's note: Read more on this subject in related Hot Topics:
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