Whitney Houston Cause of Death: The Facts and the Speculation

By IBTimes Staff Reporter: Subscribe to IBTimes's

February 13, 2012 12:23 PM EST

Whitney Houston's cause of death remains the subject of much debate. Did she die of prescription drugs? Did she drown? Was it a fatal combination?

Coroners on Sunday completed an autopsy of the singer, who was found dead Saturday in her suite at the Beverly Hills Hilton before she was to attend Clive Davis' annual pre-Grammy Awards bash.

Like other high-profile Los Angeles deaths, there is a security hold on Houston's autopsy results as detectives piece together the circumstances of her death.

Assistant Chief Ed Winter of the Los Angeles County coroner's office told reporters Sunday "there will be no cause of death at this time because it is pending toxicology reports."

Asked Monday whether authorities knew the cause of death and were barred from releasing it because of the security hold, Winter said, "We do not know [the cause] yet." He added that the coroner's office would notify police and Houston's family as soon as they knew.

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"I know there are reports that she maybe was drowned or did she overdose? But we won't make a final determination until all the tests are in," Winter said.

Those lab results are not expected for another six to eight weeks.

What is known is that Whitney Houston's life of glorious songs and heartbreaking self-destruction ended in a bathtub at the upscale Beverly Hill's hotel. Though Assistant Chief Coroner Ed Winter declined to say anything more about the room's condition or any evidence investigators recovered, TMZ reports that about "a half dozen pill bottles" were found in Houston's room. Those prescriptions drugs reportedly found included Xanax, prompting speculation that the departed diva died by drowning in her tub.

Though Xanax is not a meant to be a sedative, the anti-anxiety drug is known to cause drowsiness - particularly when combined with alcohol.

Sources told E! News that Houston had filled prescriptions for antidepression and antianxiety medication for years. Houston reportedly believed Xanax helped calm her nerves before going out in public.

There were more questions than answers Monday about Houston's sudden death.

A member of Houston's "entourage" reportedly found her in the bathtub around 3:30 p.m. Saturday. The 48-year-old was officially pronounced dead at 3:55 p.m.

There are multiple reports that Houston had been drinking with friends the night before her death at the hotel, though no alcohol was found in the preliminary sweep of Houston's room, TMZ reported.

The celebrity gossip site said Houston's head was under water and she could not be resuscitated by paramedics after being removed from the tub. Regardless of whether or not this is true, police say there were no indications of foul play and no obvious signs of trauma on Houston's body.

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