Table 1.
Weight of organs at postmortem examination in 38 cases in which methadone was detected and in 50 controls in which toxicology screening was negative
| Group | Mean age (years) | Mean weight (g) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Heart | Lungs | Liver | Spleen | Brain | ||
| Control (n = 50) | 37.0 | 345 | 1175 | 1516 | 141 | 1336 |
| Cases in which death was methadone related (n = 21) | 48.3*** | 408* | 1482* | 2059* | 278*** | 1305 |
| Cases in which methadone was incidental (n = 17) | 46.3*** | 437* | 1308 | 1935* | 304*** | 1389 |
*
P < 0.05, **P < 0.01, ***P < 0.001 for comparison with controls.