The Los Angeles County coroner’s office said that Carrie Fisher died from sleep apnea and a combination of other factors, though it was unable to identify one specific reason for the 60-year-old icon’s death last December.
From the AP:
Among the factors that contributed to Ms. Fisher’s death was a buildup of fatty tissue in the walls of her arteries, the Los Angeles County coroner’s office said in a news release late Friday. The release states that the actor showed signs of having taken multiple drugs, but investigators could not determine whether they contributed to her death in December.
The examination was performed three days after Fisher died, and though there were signs of “multiple drug intake,” it’s unclear what role, if any, those substances played in her death.
Fisher’s daugher, Billie Lourd, said that her mother “battled drug addiction and mental illness her entire life,” and that “she ultimately died of it.” From CNN:
“She was purposefully open in all of her work about the social stigmas surrounding these diseases,” Lourd said in a statement.
“I know my Mom, she’d want her death to encourage people to be open about their struggles. Seek help, fight for government funding for mental health programs. Shame and those social stigmas are the enemies of progress to solutions and ultimately a cure. Love you Momby,” she added.