[butterdezillion]

Do you know much about how a coroner’s office works?

Also, do you know if a death certificate is on hold until the final cause of death is determined when there is an autopsy?

The two things the coroner’s office has said which relate to the questions you asked are these: the coroner’s office said right away that Breitbart hadn’t seen a doctor for over a year, and now the toxicology report says there were no prescription or illicit drugs in his body. What does that suggest to you regarding his heart history?

In a previous post I asked heartweb some questions about potassium and arsenic poisoning; since you’re a medical person, any insight you might have about those things would be greatly appreciated as well. =)

[Texas Songwriter]

I have never worked in the coroners office. I, like all physicians spent time in the pathology lab. The filling out of the death certificate if not contested or involved in a legal process is fairly straight forward. If it is a fact he has not seen a physician for over 1 year mitigates against an unstable coronary process or it may indicate that Mr. Breitbart was not a compliant patient. I cannot say or speculate. With no cardiac drugs in his system, again this might indicate noncompliance or lack of disease. I have not heard his serum K+ level. Arsenic poisoning is usually a slow incidious process from ingesting small quantities of arsenic and is unlikely, it seems to me. I believe I read where the coroner said the cause of death was "heart failure". This term, as I have stated earlier is very nonspecific.

I am afraid I am of no help to you, and your looking into this matter. Some things do not add up.

I might also add that the coroner might be sensitive to much of the commentary on various blogs about concerns of someone sympathetic to obama, and might hold off the release. This is just speculation on my part. Or the family might have made a request to hold off as long as possible.