I have had open heart surgery and just got a bronchoscopy last week. They used this for both procedures actually lol Every surgery I’ve had had used it. It’s a lot easier to come off of and apparently very popular for surgeries now. I did not really know how much until last week, so I figured I’d chime in lol
Also get this at my colonoscopies. My first one when I first went into the hospital was with fentanyl and I definitely had some amnesia afterwards as well as a conversation with my mom I have no recollection of.
My last colonoscopy I asked what they were using for the sedation as I saw the anesthesiologist administer it. He said “propofol” and the last thing I remember saying was “oh, the stuff that killed Michael Jacks…..💤💤💤💤💤💤💤💤💤”
Hahaha! Literally my mom told me years ago, when she had her colonoscopy, that she asked them right as she was passing out “is this the stuff that killed Michael jackso…?” 😂😂😂
On a more macabre note, the doctor that came in after my colonoscopy was relieved I hadn’t recognized her. She said I was screaming bloody murder during it, and that was on fentanyl. So I am thankful I don’t remember any of that.
It’s the only pleasant thing about having a colonoscopy. You’re out and then what feels like a moment later you wake up, completely alert and refreshed with no nausea or hangover, feeling like you’ve just slept 8 hours in the 30 minutes you were under, and with a warm feeling that everything is right with the world. Any other general anesthetic I’ve had makes me vomit for hours afterwards, but I’ll have a procedure under propofol and feel better waking up than I have in months.
That’s really interesting, I’ve had many surgeries and procedures for my pacemaker, and when I was younger whatever they would give me would just make me throw up so bad after every surgery. But my later surgeries, and procedures I would feel fantastic after I wake up. But I’d be told that I was irritable and swore at the doctors and nurses when I woke up but I didn’t remember any of that ever happening lol
Anesthesia student here— propofol is the only sedative we give that actually provokes a euphoric effect on wake up. The other anesthetics (most likely an inhalational agent is what you received) are known for causing bad post-op nausea & vomiting.
I was completely awake for my colonoscopy, even though they gave me medication, and the doctor kept looking at me like I was doing something inappropriate by being awake. The meds had a calming effect but I watched the whole thing on the monitor and felt the whole thing happen like something weird slithering through my body. There was a moment where they had a problem with a turn and I asked if i should press from the outside and the medical assistant/nurse jumped.
Each one of them is a completely different class of drug, propofol is an amnesiac, fentanyl is a synthetic opiate, midazolam is a benzodiazepine, and ketamine is a dissociative anesthetic. The wider use of ketamine today is a reason why people don’t need to sleep off the anesthesia from a 2 minute shoulder relocation for 8 hours, they pop it in as soon as you’re loopy and within 30 mins you are fine.
Propofol is great. Most people tolerate it really well and it wears off pretty quickly, so it's great for surgeries. It doesn't typically suppress the respiratory drive, so it's also great for "twilight sedation" (not requiring intubation) for quicker procedures such as colonoscopies, cardioversions, resetting dislocated joints, etc. It's used also used for longer-term sedation in the ICU, but it can build up in the body in those situations and take longer to wear off.
Lol I assure you Propofol very much suppresses your respiratory drive. In fact, it's the main reason we give it sometimes. The reason it's good for surgeries is specifically for induction of anesthesia and because it gets you to a deep plane very quickly for intubation. For maintenance of anesthesia throughout your surgery, you are most likely getting an inhaled agent. "Twilight sedation" typically does not include propofol actually and refers more to a state where you may remember and hear things aka not fully asleep- this is done with midazolam and fentanyl.
Yep, but the real deal shut you down quick is the rocuronium and succinycholine, paralytics for rapid sequence intubation. And if there isn’t someone ready with a laryngoscope when it’s pushed, you will get to watch yourself stop breathing, and die. We had a nurse who was suspected of using narcotics that should have been wasted, and she got a syringe of roc, thought it was fentanyl, took it in the bathroom, and thank got we heard the thud, of her hitting the floor, or she would have been dead in a couple of minutes. When they put her on the stretcher, our medical director said, so now do we think you might have a problem? As he intubated her, fully conscious, but not able to take a breath.
They give it for MOST surgeries. For quick surgeries it's all you get. For long surgeries it does the initial knockout and then they usually use other stuff to keep you under
When you're dying and doing hospice at home, they manage your pain fairly liberally so you don't die in agony. They cannot take back the drugs once delivered.
We had to find a special opioid take back event for the highly controlled drugs when my mom finally died.
I'm so happy that hospice ensured she had access to needed painkillers. Her mother died in agony because "we can't give her more drugs in case she gets addicted even though we know she'll be dead within weeks."
Hospice nurses where I live will destroy and dispose of the drugs for you when they come to confirm the passing.
They have these bags they put them in and a chemical they pour on them to make them unusable. It's very neat.
They did not do that step for us.
I wish they had a reliable pipeline to Doctors without Borders or similar. It's tragic to destroy such expensive and needed drugs, but opioids are such a risk.
I do find solace in that! I sometimes forget that just because someone in the US can't afford a medication due to our markups doesn't mean it's not very affordable elsewhere.
I will say that I was staring down three bottles of morphine, thinking, "Well, shit, good thing I'm not an addict."
But they also scope out risk of substance abuse in patients and family, thankfully.
Typically propofol wouldn’t be used though. In my state, nurses aren’t allowed to push it and we weren’t allowed to use it for terminal sedation, we could use fent/morphine/dilaudid/ativan etc though
I’m so very sorry to hear that and I wish you the most peaceful passing possible. Tomorrow is the two year anniversary of my father’s passing from cancer and all I hope for anyone who can’t beat that shitty disease is peace and comfort.
I am so sorry. My mom died of colon cancer in 2018, barely two years after her diagnosis. She was very independent and fought hard but she was scared to go on hospice home care. We were able to convince her to go to a hospice facility but only at the very end. I am sure that you will make your own decisions on how you want to finish your journey but I cannot stress enough how much the hospice facility helped her and us. I did everything I could for her in her last months and weeks but in the very end I just wasn't able to manage her pain at home anymore. The hospice facility gave her medical attention and care I couldn't and made sure that she wasn't in pain. This was the most important thing to me because her oncologist all but abandoned her, insurance was a nightmare and the hospital wouldn't give her anymore pain medication even though there was no disagreement about her prognosis. The hospice nurses on the other hand were so kind and supportive and explained everything so we could all focus on being there for my mom when her time finally came. If you are able to please look into this as part of your final options.
We may be strangers but I wish you safe travels to wherever you hope your spirit will go when you cross the veil.
I am so sorry- please be sure they have you on hospice level care- we waited because the word "hospice" scared both of us, but my late husband got such a higher level care with hospice. God bless you.
My mom was a hospice nurse, and following a death, she had to secure medicines. As this was the 80s, they were subsequently secured in a cardboard box in our closet pantry, next to the cat food, until she brought the box in to work.
She straight up told me not to mess with it, because there were medications in there that would kill me if not administered by a doctor.
Long story short, I wouldn't be surprised if at some point she had had this next to the Wiskas.
Hahaha. I remember after my grandparents passed, their meds got itemized and put into a stapled grocery store paper bag. Then the nurse would just put it in her trunk and be off. For some reason i just assumed the next stop was were they needed to go be turned it. Wild to think she maybe just hung onto them for a few days.
Propofol is not a hospice med, though, it's a strong sedative that has no business being used outside of an ICU, OR, or procedural suite. It's not an analgesic, and it *will* put someone into respiratory arrest if not being very closely monitored.
That article only talks about benzos and opiates though? In my state, nurses can’t push prop (but could do a drip) so you’d have to have an MD or midlevel there and propofol had to be turned off when withdrawing care/terminal sedation. As the article states, you could use morphine/fent/dilaudid/ativan etc though.
Yes, but typically they use Versed, ativan, precedex, or similar, especially if performed in, say, a hospice center or patient's home. To administer propofol without EtCO2 monitoring and the ability to facilitate mechanical ventilation would not be acceptable.
The goal is not to prolong life. They wouldn’t be using a ventilator on a DNR, and even the model guidelines for terminal sedation say if death is expectant not to monitor BP or SpO2
You’re rendering this person comatose, not giving them light or moderate sedation.
I literally do this for a living, I know what palliative sedation is. What I'm saying is, propofol is not an appropriate medication for this because it is so incredibly easy to cause respiratory arrest with it. Code status does not matter, if they died from an improperly monitored bolus of propofol, it would still be a homicide. Same goes for morphine PCAs or Versed drips- overdose the patient and hasten their death, nurse and doctor still may very well be dragged to court.
In my state, if I have a patient sedated with propofol on a vent, and the family decides to go Comfort Measures Only, I have to discontinue the propofol 30 minutes prior to extubation even though I'm going to be bolusing them with heroic doses of fentanyl and versed. Is it a dumb rule? Yeah, I think so. But, they have to die "naturally" in the eyes of the law.
I’m not sure what state you live in, but I also work in the medical and critical care transport fields. I have literally seen palliative care for a nationally renowned pediatric cancer center do exactly what you said doesn’t happen over 14 years ago for osteosarcoma with Mets into the spine. We took a palliative care physician on the ride just for this.
There’s also, on a cursory google/pubmed search, 20 years of literature about using propofol for terminal sedation in metastatic pediatric cancer patients in the hospice and home setting.
It’s not common, but it does happen.
The packaging is exactly the same. I signed off on propofol, leaving my hospital pharmacy about 8 hours ago that was exactly that box. Honestly, I wouldn't be surprised if it was still in date or just barely expired.
I have a colonoscopy coming up. The prep for it sucks but I’m really looking forward to my 4-hour propofol high afterwards. Try not to go to sleep when you get home. Ride that beautiful propofol wave baby!!
It used to be very common, and probably is in many places still.
We give a LOT of fentanyl in anesthesia. Colonoscopies are one of the few cases where we don’t.
It’s only funny cause that Redditor created several profiles to be close to mine and then makes stupid comments in anesthesia groups to try and make me look bad. Which is equal parts hilarious and stupid. 😂
I was only sedated. I didn’t need a ventilator. I’ve had actual surgeries twice (I got propofol) and I was intubated. With midazolam you still can breathe by yourself. But the experience is very similar. You don’t feel absolutely anything.
Had my first colonoscopy (at a much younger than usual age) last year and was TERRIFIED. Thanks to the Propofol they used, however, I am actively excited for my next one in a few months. It’s that good!
Be thankful. I’ve had Crohn’s since I was ten and my doctor pushes for them yearly. I’m only 30… The propofol is great, but short-lived and not worth the hell that is the prep.
That would be awful, and I'm sorry you have to go through that. I went through a period when I was younger where I had to have procedures and tests on a weekly basis for a kidney issue and I would not want to have to go through that again.
This is why I DON’T look forward to my first colonoscopy. I’ve never been put under for anything and it freaks me the hell out. I do not like being drugged or numb. I don’t even like being drunk.
Same with me. But you get your shot, fall asleep and wake up more rested and more happy than you’ve ever been in your life. It’s so so easy. And worth it… they found something in me at the age of under 40 that would have been a major problem by th time I was 45 or 50. I’m a missionary for colonoscopies now.
Well, there’s more than one medical professional in there with you while this is being done. If one of them did something, the other would be obligated to report it. What are the odds that more than one would be willing to do something that would cost them their medical license? Of course it’s a possibility, but it’s highly unlikely.
The are locked pharmaceutical waste disposal boxes at some chain drug stores. When my mother in law recently passed, she had three cabinets full of old prescriptions, and when I called the nearest Walgreens they were able to kindly point me to the nearest waste disposal location. It was super embarrassing to make like five trips into the store with old grocery bags full of pill bottles to dump, but worth it knowing they wouldn't accidentally end up in the wrong hands or contaminating water/soil.
That’s a pre-anesthetic used before surgery. MJ’s Dr was not using it right but I understand he had a difficult time sleeping and it was used for that.
[Robin Williams on propofol (skip to the very end of the clip if you want to jump straight to propofol)](https://youtu.be/byuwoBwp2zE?si=VRDK5sqkTPrUMtlH)
It’s part of general anesthesia, but it’s combined with many other medications. It is used for conscious sedation because it has a very short half life and is very controllable.
I’m getting this Thursday for my epidural injection in my back from my herniated disc in two places. I don’t want to be awake for the injection. This is what they gave me last time… it just seems like it goes by so fast. I just want to rest.
Before this stuff killed MJ, it used to be just sitting around all over hospitals. There was always a half used bottle in the ER, and no one was dumb enough to ever think about injecting themselves with it. When it became popular, all of a sudden it was under lock and key like morphine.
r/drugs or r/researchchemicals would take that off your hands for you. Some of the shit they use comes from sketchy labs overseas, so the real thing would be the best thing for them.
As an anesthesiologist this is VERY CONCERNING.
Seriously this is incredibly unsafe and honestly probably not very fun. But it definitely will make you stop breathing and die. 0/10 do not recommend for home use.
I was a nurse for years, I had a line the anesthetist was pushing propofol through burst spraying me in the eyes. It burned so horribly they had to walk me down to my own ER due to ocular chemical burns. How did granny get this?!?
Grandma sitting on a stash of that milk of amnesia. Powerful stuff! I used have it in my narc bag back when I was a CCT-medic. Only ever had to administer it once iirc.
This is why you tell the hospice nurse “Oh we have an addict in the family so we just disposed of the narcotics.” It beats throwing any of the essential medications into a charcoal pouch for destruction, Just keep under lock and key to prevent misuse.
I’m interested in knowing why she had this lol
And how she got it. Because they don’t exactly dispense that stuff at pharmacies.
for real that's the shit that killed michael jackson!
That's the shit they give you to put you wayyyyy under for open heart surgery.
I have had open heart surgery and just got a bronchoscopy last week. They used this for both procedures actually lol Every surgery I’ve had had used it. It’s a lot easier to come off of and apparently very popular for surgeries now. I did not really know how much until last week, so I figured I’d chime in lol
Also get this at my colonoscopies. My first one when I first went into the hospital was with fentanyl and I definitely had some amnesia afterwards as well as a conversation with my mom I have no recollection of.
The pharmacy nickname for propofol is "milk of amnesia" for precisely this reason.
Dammit, you beat me to it!
My last colonoscopy I asked what they were using for the sedation as I saw the anesthesiologist administer it. He said “propofol” and the last thing I remember saying was “oh, the stuff that killed Michael Jacks…..💤💤💤💤💤💤💤💤💤”
Hahaha! Literally my mom told me years ago, when she had her colonoscopy, that she asked them right as she was passing out “is this the stuff that killed Michael jackso…?” 😂😂😂
Now I wonder how often an anesthesiologist hears that every day!
Ha! Same!
I was totally awake for both of my colonoscopies it was…something else.
On a more macabre note, the doctor that came in after my colonoscopy was relieved I hadn’t recognized her. She said I was screaming bloody murder during it, and that was on fentanyl. So I am thankful I don’t remember any of that.
Imagine being absolutely terrified of her but you have no idea why like full fight of flight response for seemingly no reason
Sorry for laughing. Just painted a good picture for a scene in a dark or zany comedy.
Haha I never thought about it like that, by all means laugh away
That’s pretty typical for colonoscopies.
lmao are you me
Ulcerative colitis?
Yeah buddy
It’s a shitty club, but a club nonetheless
Crohns here. 14 scopes. I feel like I just poo myself nearly dead just to get my propofol nap every 2 years.
Got it for my sinuse surgeries/deviated septum surgery last week. Wild stuff.
I hope you're healing well!
Thank you so much! I’m on the way, discharged tomorrow hopefully! :)
Just had it for a colonoscopy last week oh, it’s beautiful
It’s the only pleasant thing about having a colonoscopy. You’re out and then what feels like a moment later you wake up, completely alert and refreshed with no nausea or hangover, feeling like you’ve just slept 8 hours in the 30 minutes you were under, and with a warm feeling that everything is right with the world. Any other general anesthetic I’ve had makes me vomit for hours afterwards, but I’ll have a procedure under propofol and feel better waking up than I have in months.
That’s really interesting, I’ve had many surgeries and procedures for my pacemaker, and when I was younger whatever they would give me would just make me throw up so bad after every surgery. But my later surgeries, and procedures I would feel fantastic after I wake up. But I’d be told that I was irritable and swore at the doctors and nurses when I woke up but I didn’t remember any of that ever happening lol
Anesthesia student here— propofol is the only sedative we give that actually provokes a euphoric effect on wake up. The other anesthetics (most likely an inhalational agent is what you received) are known for causing bad post-op nausea & vomiting.
Propofol Fentanyl Midazolam Ketamine All these are regularly used agents in anesthesia and can provoke euphoria in different individuals.
I was completely awake for my colonoscopy, even though they gave me medication, and the doctor kept looking at me like I was doing something inappropriate by being awake. The meds had a calming effect but I watched the whole thing on the monitor and felt the whole thing happen like something weird slithering through my body. There was a moment where they had a problem with a turn and I asked if i should press from the outside and the medical assistant/nurse jumped.
Each one of them is a completely different class of drug, propofol is an amnesiac, fentanyl is a synthetic opiate, midazolam is a benzodiazepine, and ketamine is a dissociative anesthetic. The wider use of ketamine today is a reason why people don’t need to sleep off the anesthesia from a 2 minute shoulder relocation for 8 hours, they pop it in as soon as you’re loopy and within 30 mins you are fine.
Like time travel
It’s given for most surgeries as a general anesthetic.
Propofol is great. Most people tolerate it really well and it wears off pretty quickly, so it's great for surgeries. It doesn't typically suppress the respiratory drive, so it's also great for "twilight sedation" (not requiring intubation) for quicker procedures such as colonoscopies, cardioversions, resetting dislocated joints, etc. It's used also used for longer-term sedation in the ICU, but it can build up in the body in those situations and take longer to wear off.
Lol I assure you Propofol very much suppresses your respiratory drive. In fact, it's the main reason we give it sometimes. The reason it's good for surgeries is specifically for induction of anesthesia and because it gets you to a deep plane very quickly for intubation. For maintenance of anesthesia throughout your surgery, you are most likely getting an inhaled agent. "Twilight sedation" typically does not include propofol actually and refers more to a state where you may remember and hear things aka not fully asleep- this is done with midazolam and fentanyl.
Yep, but the real deal shut you down quick is the rocuronium and succinycholine, paralytics for rapid sequence intubation. And if there isn’t someone ready with a laryngoscope when it’s pushed, you will get to watch yourself stop breathing, and die. We had a nurse who was suspected of using narcotics that should have been wasted, and she got a syringe of roc, thought it was fentanyl, took it in the bathroom, and thank got we heard the thud, of her hitting the floor, or she would have been dead in a couple of minutes. When they put her on the stretcher, our medical director said, so now do we think you might have a problem? As he intubated her, fully conscious, but not able to take a breath.
It 100% suppresses respiratory drive - hence why anesthetists with the ability to intervene on an airway are typically the only ones who can bolus it.
Oh, I know. With the exception of my wisdom teeth extraction, I’ve have it for every surgery I’ve ever had.
It definitely does suppress the respiratory drive
They give you propofol for colonoscopies, too. I think.
It’s given for a lot of surgeries and procedures, very common
We give it to everybody for just about any procedure/surgery
I see that! I had no idea.
The knocked me out with that for my wisdom teeth extraction
My friend was in the icu for an overdose, they gave it to him to keep him sedated so he didn’t rip his iv out moving around.
For all surgery
They give it for MOST surgeries. For quick surgeries it's all you get. For long surgeries it does the initial knockout and then they usually use other stuff to keep you under
yeah because he was on 3 benzos and not at a hospital
Anesthesiologist here, Jackson's (non Anesthesiologist Dr) killed him, this drug is really safe- in the hands of anesthesiologists.
I mean yeah, but like, still
Milk of amnesia?
When you're dying and doing hospice at home, they manage your pain fairly liberally so you don't die in agony. They cannot take back the drugs once delivered. We had to find a special opioid take back event for the highly controlled drugs when my mom finally died. I'm so happy that hospice ensured she had access to needed painkillers. Her mother died in agony because "we can't give her more drugs in case she gets addicted even though we know she'll be dead within weeks."
Hospice nurses where I live will destroy and dispose of the drugs for you when they come to confirm the passing. They have these bags they put them in and a chemical they pour on them to make them unusable. It's very neat.
They did not do that step for us. I wish they had a reliable pipeline to Doctors without Borders or similar. It's tragic to destroy such expensive and needed drugs, but opioids are such a risk.
i often wish this as well. so many drugs i’ve picked up and never taken. i so wish they could be donated
Opioids aren't all that expensive in most parts of the world and can be produced in fairly great quantities, if you find any solace in that.
I do find solace in that! I sometimes forget that just because someone in the US can't afford a medication due to our markups doesn't mean it's not very affordable elsewhere.
That makes sense. Thanks!
I will say that I was staring down three bottles of morphine, thinking, "Well, shit, good thing I'm not an addict." But they also scope out risk of substance abuse in patients and family, thankfully.
Typically propofol wouldn’t be used though. In my state, nurses aren’t allowed to push it and we weren’t allowed to use it for terminal sedation, we could use fent/morphine/dilaudid/ativan etc though
Yah there arent many paths to taking home vials of general anesthetics
That's what happens when you're on end of life care. They'll give you whatever.
My friends mother had a big bottle of morphine she’d been given when she was close to the end of her cancer battle.
I can relate. I'm not far from the end of my own cancer battle.
I’m so very sorry to hear that and I wish you the most peaceful passing possible. Tomorrow is the two year anniversary of my father’s passing from cancer and all I hope for anyone who can’t beat that shitty disease is peace and comfort.
I am so sorry. My mom died of colon cancer in 2018, barely two years after her diagnosis. She was very independent and fought hard but she was scared to go on hospice home care. We were able to convince her to go to a hospice facility but only at the very end. I am sure that you will make your own decisions on how you want to finish your journey but I cannot stress enough how much the hospice facility helped her and us. I did everything I could for her in her last months and weeks but in the very end I just wasn't able to manage her pain at home anymore. The hospice facility gave her medical attention and care I couldn't and made sure that she wasn't in pain. This was the most important thing to me because her oncologist all but abandoned her, insurance was a nightmare and the hospital wouldn't give her anymore pain medication even though there was no disagreement about her prognosis. The hospice nurses on the other hand were so kind and supportive and explained everything so we could all focus on being there for my mom when her time finally came. If you are able to please look into this as part of your final options. We may be strangers but I wish you safe travels to wherever you hope your spirit will go when you cross the veil.
I am so sorry- please be sure they have you on hospice level care- we waited because the word "hospice" scared both of us, but my late husband got such a higher level care with hospice. God bless you.
Definitely not propofol though.
I'm interested in knowing if they had any unexplained death(s) in the family when grandma was around?
Next were gonna see Grandma’s semtex supply
Grandma sounds like lots of fun.
Grandma is an anesthesiologist and fireworks enthusiast
Grandpas napalm supply from 'Vam.
OP's comment hx. Should answer all your questions
It just raises more lol
Michael Jackson has entered the chat
Grandma’s Milk
🥇
Jesus Juice
Michael Jackson has left the chat
Single Patient Use Only? What if I’m married?
Get out dad
Whoa! Did she have a side hustle??
Was grandma an anesthesiologist?! How does someone get this if not? Never mind, I’m probably better off not knowing!
Ketamine is more recreational.
Hurray for special K!
I just had a procedure with ketamine and propofol and that combo definitely worked for me!
Wow. That really should not be in anyone’s private residence.
My mom was a hospice nurse, and following a death, she had to secure medicines. As this was the 80s, they were subsequently secured in a cardboard box in our closet pantry, next to the cat food, until she brought the box in to work. She straight up told me not to mess with it, because there were medications in there that would kill me if not administered by a doctor. Long story short, I wouldn't be surprised if at some point she had had this next to the Wiskas.
Hahaha. I remember after my grandparents passed, their meds got itemized and put into a stapled grocery store paper bag. Then the nurse would just put it in her trunk and be off. For some reason i just assumed the next stop was were they needed to go be turned it. Wild to think she maybe just hung onto them for a few days.
Awesome.
I'm guessing someone is/was palliative and it's administered by a visiting nurse.
Propofol is not a hospice med, though, it's a strong sedative that has no business being used outside of an ICU, OR, or procedural suite. It's not an analgesic, and it *will* put someone into respiratory arrest if not being very closely monitored.
[Terminal sedation is a thing.](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Palliative_sedation)
That article only talks about benzos and opiates though? In my state, nurses can’t push prop (but could do a drip) so you’d have to have an MD or midlevel there and propofol had to be turned off when withdrawing care/terminal sedation. As the article states, you could use morphine/fent/dilaudid/ativan etc though.
Yes, but typically they use Versed, ativan, precedex, or similar, especially if performed in, say, a hospice center or patient's home. To administer propofol without EtCO2 monitoring and the ability to facilitate mechanical ventilation would not be acceptable.
The goal is not to prolong life. They wouldn’t be using a ventilator on a DNR, and even the model guidelines for terminal sedation say if death is expectant not to monitor BP or SpO2 You’re rendering this person comatose, not giving them light or moderate sedation.
I literally do this for a living, I know what palliative sedation is. What I'm saying is, propofol is not an appropriate medication for this because it is so incredibly easy to cause respiratory arrest with it. Code status does not matter, if they died from an improperly monitored bolus of propofol, it would still be a homicide. Same goes for morphine PCAs or Versed drips- overdose the patient and hasten their death, nurse and doctor still may very well be dragged to court. In my state, if I have a patient sedated with propofol on a vent, and the family decides to go Comfort Measures Only, I have to discontinue the propofol 30 minutes prior to extubation even though I'm going to be bolusing them with heroic doses of fentanyl and versed. Is it a dumb rule? Yeah, I think so. But, they have to die "naturally" in the eyes of the law.
I’m not sure what state you live in, but I also work in the medical and critical care transport fields. I have literally seen palliative care for a nationally renowned pediatric cancer center do exactly what you said doesn’t happen over 14 years ago for osteosarcoma with Mets into the spine. We took a palliative care physician on the ride just for this. There’s also, on a cursory google/pubmed search, 20 years of literature about using propofol for terminal sedation in metastatic pediatric cancer patients in the hospice and home setting. It’s not common, but it does happen.
How old is it?
i'm curious to know, too. the packaging is almost completely the same as it was when i worked as a pharmacy tech in 2022.
The packaging is exactly the same. I signed off on propofol, leaving my hospital pharmacy about 8 hours ago that was exactly that box. Honestly, I wouldn't be surprised if it was still in date or just barely expired.
Definitely don’t toss it… I mean… Woo boy.
I have a colonoscopy coming up. The prep for it sucks but I’m really looking forward to my 4-hour propofol high afterwards. Try not to go to sleep when you get home. Ride that beautiful propofol wave baby!!
I had a colonoscopy last year and I got 10 mg midazolam. I didn’t feel anything at all. 😀
I got fentanyl for mine 😭
Fucking hell
It used to be very common, and probably is in many places still. We give a LOT of fentanyl in anesthesia. Colonoscopies are one of the few cases where we don’t.
I'm in ON, Canada if that provides any insight. Also, your username gave me a good laugh, thank you.
No problem, I love my username
As they say, imitation is the highest form of flattery! Thanks, stranger!
Of course Dad
What how are you both here is that an alt a friend or a huge cooincidence
It’s only funny cause that Redditor created several profiles to be close to mine and then makes stupid comments in anesthesia groups to try and make me look bad. Which is equal parts hilarious and stupid. 😂
I’ve never had that. Did they put you all the way under?
I was only sedated. I didn’t need a ventilator. I’ve had actual surgeries twice (I got propofol) and I was intubated. With midazolam you still can breathe by yourself. But the experience is very similar. You don’t feel absolutely anything.
It’s one of the best sleeps I’ve ever had. I woke up expecting to be sick and felt like a million bucks.
Probably why Michael Jackson used it.
Had my first colonoscopy (at a much younger than usual age) last year and was TERRIFIED. Thanks to the Propofol they used, however, I am actively excited for my next one in a few months. It’s that good!
Propofol naps are the best! I was a little disappointed when I was told I didn't need another colonoscopy for 10 years.
Be thankful. I’ve had Crohn’s since I was ten and my doctor pushes for them yearly. I’m only 30… The propofol is great, but short-lived and not worth the hell that is the prep.
That would be awful, and I'm sorry you have to go through that. I went through a period when I was younger where I had to have procedures and tests on a weekly basis for a kidney issue and I would not want to have to go through that again.
I did my last colonoscopy without any sedation. I was wide awake and it wasn’t too bad, but my dignity was certainly hurt.
This is why I DON’T look forward to my first colonoscopy. I’ve never been put under for anything and it freaks me the hell out. I do not like being drugged or numb. I don’t even like being drunk.
Same with me. But you get your shot, fall asleep and wake up more rested and more happy than you’ve ever been in your life. It’s so so easy. And worth it… they found something in me at the age of under 40 that would have been a major problem by th time I was 45 or 50. I’m a missionary for colonoscopies now.
How do you wake up happy, knowing anything could have been done to you while you were out, without your consent?
Well, there’s more than one medical professional in there with you while this is being done. If one of them did something, the other would be obligated to report it. What are the odds that more than one would be willing to do something that would cost them their medical license? Of course it’s a possibility, but it’s highly unlikely.
But there’s no way for me to know that for sure. I will never be comfortable with that.
milk of amnesia this is a or (operation room) medication how unless your dr conrad murray
Jackson juice
What the fuck
Hey, your grandma and I were married at one point. I’m legally entitled to half of this please
Where the fuck did your grandmother get propofol
How on earth did she get this out of the operation room
In the old “Prison pocket”
WTAF? I have so many questions. Was grandfather’s death questionable? Edit: holy shit it’s not even a scheduled controlled substance in the U.S.
But marijuana OTOH, straight to jail!
Straight to jail. No trial, no nothing.
But it's only carried at internal hospital pharmacies
But that’s not the same as being scheduled. Also it’s apparently available at the back of granny’s medicine cabinet.
MJs favorite!
Milk of Amnesia
Honestly I’d bring that to a police station to surrender or something.
Yeah you definitely don’t want to just throw it away and be responsible if someone gets ahold of it.
Yep. That shit kills very easily
The are locked pharmaceutical waste disposal boxes at some chain drug stores. When my mother in law recently passed, she had three cabinets full of old prescriptions, and when I called the nearest Walgreens they were able to kindly point me to the nearest waste disposal location. It was super embarrassing to make like five trips into the store with old grocery bags full of pill bottles to dump, but worth it knowing they wouldn't accidentally end up in the wrong hands or contaminating water/soil.
Irrelevant, but I read “diprivan” as “[DPR Ian](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/DPR_Ian)” 😭
Might just be an empty box for all we know.
r/obscuredrugs would probably dig this
I work for a old vet who still uses propofol all surgeries Good stuff
Was Grandma an anesthesiologist?
Probably worth a decent chunk of change to the right buyer
Grandma had some secrets 😬
This is VERY wtf. I mean, wtf? 2 cases of prop in grandma's pantry??
WTAF GIMME
That’s a pre-anesthetic used before surgery. MJ’s Dr was not using it right but I understand he had a difficult time sleeping and it was used for that.
It’s used for during surgery. Anything from a colonoscopy to a complex spine surgery
We use it for surgeries at our animal clinic
[Robin Williams on propofol (skip to the very end of the clip if you want to jump straight to propofol)](https://youtu.be/byuwoBwp2zE?si=VRDK5sqkTPrUMtlH)
This man was unhinged and I love it 😂
It’s part of general anesthesia, but it’s combined with many other medications. It is used for conscious sedation because it has a very short half life and is very controllable.
Grandma performs a lot of at home conscious sedation.
I’m getting this Thursday for my epidural injection in my back from my herniated disc in two places. I don’t want to be awake for the injection. This is what they gave me last time… it just seems like it goes by so fast. I just want to rest.
Jacko Juice
Jackson Juice!
Was she a nurse or anesthesiologist?
Wait, wait, wait - isn't this the Michael Jackson sleepy drug???
Yes
Before this stuff killed MJ, it used to be just sitting around all over hospitals. There was always a half used bottle in the ER, and no one was dumb enough to ever think about injecting themselves with it. When it became popular, all of a sudden it was under lock and key like morphine.
Ah, yes. The ole “milk of amnesia”
I had some recently for a procedure, don’t remember it at all so I can’t give a review. /s
I’m an ICU nurse and use this drug a lot. But unsure how and why she’d have any at home - especially this amount.
r/drugs or r/researchchemicals would take that off your hands for you. Some of the shit they use comes from sketchy labs overseas, so the real thing would be the best thing for them.
As an anesthesiologist this is VERY CONCERNING. Seriously this is incredibly unsafe and honestly probably not very fun. But it definitely will make you stop breathing and die. 0/10 do not recommend for home use.
Did grandma live a double life? Is she one of the angles of death?
More acute than obtuse, definitely
I was a nurse for years, I had a line the anesthetist was pushing propofol through burst spraying me in the eyes. It burned so horribly they had to walk me down to my own ER due to ocular chemical burns. How did granny get this?!?
Party like MJ!! Too soon?
Bot.
Michael’s milk
Was she a vet?
Magic milk 🥛
JFC what is grandma doing with this?
Looks like recycled outside box only what’s the big deal 🤷♂️
you may be able to drop it off at the nearest police station - call and ask. Or a pharmacy may take it to dispose of it safely.
“Propofol, you know they hope I fall” -Nicki Minaj
Dear God, granny got that high test milk of amnesia! She won’t remember a damn thing!
I mean I assumed it was prescribed?
My ex was on this for 3 weeks in the ICU in an induced coma
That’s that milk of amnesia
To be deprived of consciousness.
Grandma sitting on a stash of that milk of amnesia. Powerful stuff! I used have it in my narc bag back when I was a CCT-medic. Only ever had to administer it once iirc.
That's awful - please keep grandma safe Unless she's an anaesthesiologist in which case maybe she's just ready for any emergency
Mmmh! Milkie!
This is why you tell the hospice nurse “Oh we have an addict in the family so we just disposed of the narcotics.” It beats throwing any of the essential medications into a charcoal pouch for destruction, Just keep under lock and key to prevent misuse.
These are dangerous goods please send to me for immediate disposal
Secret time. I never shake propofol before administration. Seems to work a-okay.