Expert on Adverse Drug Reactions Speaks to AC About Leslie Fishbein's Death from Drug Injection for Back Pain

Leslie Fishbein was a Denver, Colorado celebrity, being most famous for her TV commercials for Kacey Fine Furniture, owned by her parents. Leslie Fishbein, 50, died a few weeks after being given an injection for chronic back pain. Back pain is America's No. 1 nonfatal health problem. Leslie Fishbein's back pain developed after falling from a horse in 2002.

Leslie Fishbein was an attractive woman who was also on the charity fundraising circuit. It's still hard to believe that an injection in a physician's office for chronic back pain caused her a "serious reaction," that caused her to later be placed on life support. Most people in Denver probably know the name of Leslie Fishbein, as she'd reduce the price of her furniture by the percentage of her age for each new birthday.

So how does a back pain injection kill someone?

I asked Shane Ellison, M.Sc., a medicinal chemist* based in Santa Fe, New Mexico. My first question, just to get the ball rolling, was, "Do you have any idea what happened?" after sending him the link to Leslie Fishbein's death. To which Ellison replied:

"Could have been any number of steroids - likely cortisol - or opioid mimics that killed her. Happens all the time. This time it was a celeb, so we hear about it...People need to stop letting physicians stab them."

But what if you have chronic back pain? Isn't there natural back pain relief? Can you cure back pain without drugs? Can you get back pain therapy without a doctor poking you with a syringe? Natural back pain remedies do exist.

Even though we don't have details about the mechanics behind Leslie Fishbein's back pain, what are proven back pain remedies for natural back pain relief?

Ellison: Clearly, back pain can be debilitating. A person has to decide when stopping it with drugs is worth risking their life. Safe, natural methods can be used to treat pain aggressively.