( dpa ) - Pop wreck Britney Spears was taken to hospital early Thursday for a "mental health evaluation hold," after her psychiatrist signed a decree stating she was a potential danger to herself and others.
Spears was taken from her house in an ambulance escorted by a police motorcade as dozens of paparazzi looked on. It was the second time in a month that Spears was subject to the mandatory evaluation order.
In early January she was committed to Cedars Sinai Hospital for a day, after a standoff with police, in which she refused to hand over her toddler, Jayden, to her ex-husband Kevin Federline. This time she was sent to the University of California Los Angeles Medical Center for at least three days. Celebrity website TMZ.com reported that the order could be extended for up to two weeks.
The development comes after more than a year of increasingly erratic behaviour by the former pop princess, 26, with numerous reports alleging that she suffers from a bipolar disorder.
According to the Los Angeles Times, authorities said the welfare hold was prompted by a telephone call they received from Spears' psychiatrist. Spears' parents, and other close confidantes had been battling in recent weeks to try to get her treatment.