A woman accused of killing her diabetic daughter by denying her insulin told police her daughter appeared sick for only a day prior to the child being rushed to the hospital.

But a medical expert testified that she doubts that time frame.

Juvenile diabetic Ariel Botzet, 11, probably was sick and vomiting for a lengthy period of time -- possibly several days -- before she finally arrived at the hospital with a condition known as diabetic ketoacidosis in February 2004, the expert said.

"I think probably she was sick for a few days," said Dr. Francine Kaufman, who specializes in the treatment of diabetes.

"It's not like a flash," Kaufman said. "It's usually days. If not four (days), then three."

The testimony was offered during the murder trial of Botzet's mother, Cheryl Musso, in the courtroom of District Judge Sally Loehrer on Friday afternoon.

Prosecutors allege Musso deprived her daughter of insulin over an extended period of time, causing Botzet to suffer from diabetic ketoacidosis, which is a buildup of acid in the blood.

Botzet subsequently died from swelling of the brain in February 2004.

Part of the prosecution's theory in the case is that Musso had been repeatedly trained in caring for her daughter's diabetes, yet she deliberately ignored all the danger signs that her daughter was in the midst of a serious health crisis. As part of her training regarding diabetes, authorities said Musso was warned time and again that if her daughter vomited, it was an important sign that Botzet might be seriously ill.

A doctor testified Thursday that Musso told another doctor at University Medical Center that Botzet had been vomiting for four days before she was brought to the hospital on Feb. 6, 2004.

But in an interview with homicide Detective Mark McNett nearly two weeks after her daughter's death, Musso told McNett her daughter had gotten sick in the late hours of Feb. 5, 2004, or the early morning hours of Feb. 6.

"She said she gave her Gatorade and Pepto-Bismol," McNett said.

When asked by the detective whether she thought the vomiting was diabetes-related, Musso said: "No, I thought it was flulike symptoms."

Musso also told the detective Botzet used to hide the device used to test her blood-sugar level, and that her daughter did not want to go to the doctor on the day she was rushed to the hospital.

"She was fighting going to the doctor (that day,) she didn't want to go," McNett said.

Musso's defense attorney, Herb Sachs, has said Musso -- previously known as Cheryl Botzet -- did give her daughter insulin. He also has said Ariel Botzet resisted the monitoring of her diabetic condition and that the medical personnel who treated her when she fell into a coma in February 2004 failed in their treatment of the girl.

Also in court Friday, the jury heard a hint that Musso was previously the subject of a child abuse neglect investigation by Las Vegas police. It came as Las Vegas police Abuse and Neglect Investigator Lisa Myk was on the witness stand.

During an exchange, Sachs made a statement to Myk indicating she had never before investigated Musso outside of the death of Musso's daughter.

"That's not correct," Myk said.

Myk was not allowed to elaborate in front of the jury about the fact that she also investigated Musso in connection with an allegation that Musso once pulled her daughter from a vehicle by her hair. Authorities allege the incident unfolded after Musso rammed her vehicle into another vehicle driven by the girlfriend of Musso's ex-husband, Randell Botzet.

Authorities allege Musso was angry that Ariel Botzet was in the company of her ex-husband's girlfriend.

The incident has prompted charges of battery with a deadly weapon against Musso, and those charges still are pending.

However, the jury in Musso's murder trial has not heard about the other incident because Loehrer has not allowed prosecutors to present evidence of the incident.