YOU CAN SLEEP WHEN YOU’RE DEAD

A chance discovery at a hospital in the UK has found that sleeping pills can sometimes wake patients from a coma. So far the strange effect has been documented on three semi-comatose patients who have become conscious for several hours at a time after being given a common sleeping drug called zolpidem. The drug has allowed the patients to wake up and talk to their friends and family for a few hours before the effect of the drug wears off. “The effect is amazing to say the least,” said Dr. Ralf Clauss, who accidentally made the discover when he tried to calm down a vegitative patient who was experiencing restless movements, but was shocked when the patient woke up 15 minutes after the drug was administered. A drug company in London is now working on creating a version of the drug specifically for the purpose of waking semi-comatose patients, after which clinical trials will begin. The doctors hope that a slow-release formula could be created which would allow patients to remain permanently aware. (Nature)