Actress Carrie Fisher died from sleep apnea — and used drugs prior to her death, says Los Angeles County coroner
Star Wars icon's daughter says: 'My mom battled drug addiction and mental illness her entire life. She ultimately died of it'
CARRIE Fisher's cause of death included sleep apnea and "other factors", the Los Angeles County coroner revealed on Friday.
A statement from the coroner's office also said the actress suffered from atherosclerotic heart disease and had taken multiple drugs prior to her death.
The Star Wars icon passed away on December 27, 2016, at the age of 60, four days after she was admitted to hospital following a medical emergency on a flight from London to Los Angeles.
Her only child, daughter Billie Lourd, 24, addressed the coroner's report in a statement to magazine Friday.
Billie said: “My mom battled drug addiction and mental illness her entire life. She ultimately died of it.
"She was purposefully open in all of her work about the social stigmas surrounding these diseases.
“She talked about the shame that torments people and their families confronted by these diseases.
"I know my mom, she’d want her death to encourage people to be open about their struggles.
My mom battled drug addiction and mental illness her entire life. She ultimately died of it
"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.”
Carrie was reported to have suffered a heart attack and was on life support prior to her death.
A postmortem examination was carried out shortly after Carrie died, but staff at the coroner's office determined the cause of death was "not obvious".
Officials at the Los Angeles County Coroner's Office released a death certificate within days, but they "deferred" reaching a conclusion on the cause.
Carrie passed away just one day before her mother, Hollywood legend Debbie Reynolds.
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Billie, who is also an actress,was comforted by fellow actor Taylor Lautner just moments before her grandmother was rushed to hospital.
Many believe Debbie died of "a broken heart" after she told her son Todd: "I miss her so much. I want to be with Carrie."