Pubdate: Thu, 19 Jul 2001 Source: Milwaukee Journal Sentinel (WI) Copyright: 2001 Milwaukee Journal Sentinel Contact: http://www.jsonline.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/265 Author: Amy Boerema, Franny White Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/find?186 (OxyContin) OXYCONTIN SUSPECTED IN MAN'S DEATH Appleton Man Had Taken Drug For Back Pain, Report Says The death of an Appleton man may be the second fatal OxyContin overdose in the Milwaukee area, according to a Milwaukee County medical examiner's report. Timothy T. Neddo, 27, was found dead at a relative's home in Wauwatosa early Monday morning. Neddo, a diabetic with back problems, was living with relatives in Wauwatosa, the report says. He had been taking oxycodone, a family of prescription pain relievers which includes the brand OxyContin, for back pain. A cousin came home at 1 a.m. and found Neddo on the floor, and thought he was asleep. When the cousin put a blanket on him an hour later, Neddo felt cool and was unresponsive, and the cousin called 911. The cause of death is undetermined. "He was a loving son," said his mother, Nancy. "Every day, I got a hug and a kiss from him and he told me how much he loved me. He appreciated everything I did as a mother. He's not perfect, he has done things wrong in his life, but haven't we all?" Neddo said her son especially loved children and spent as much time as possible with his niece and nephew. Neddo, who at one time weighed over 600 pounds, was diagnosed with manic depressive disorder, the medical examiner's report says. He had chronic pain and had sought help from doctors in Milwaukee and elsewhere. Whether an overdose on OxyContin caused Neddo's death won't be known for certain until toxicology tests are completed in about five weeks. The area's first oxycodone-related death occurred in Cudahy on June 6, when Jeffrey Hough, 18, died from "mixed drug toxicity" of the drugs oxycodone and Benzodiavipine, the medical examiner's office said. "OxyContin is something we're going to have to keep an eye out for," said Lt. Dennis Davidson of the Wauwatosa Police Department. "It concerns me." - --- MAP posted-by: GD