The medical examiner has released Matthew Perry‘s autopsy report, confirming that several pre-existing factors contributed to Perry’s untimely death.
On Friday (December 15), the Los Angeles coroner’s office revealed coronary artery disease, drowning, and the effects of buprenorphine — commonly used to treat opioid addictions — as contributing factors in his death.
However, they regarded the manner of his death as an accident. He was 54.
Matthew Perry Died At His Home
On October 28, ‘Friends’ fans were devastated by the news of Perry’s death after he was found unresponsive in his hot tub at his Los Angeles home. Authorities had declared him dead at the scene, and the autopsy took place on October 29.
Per the medical examiner’s report, Perry had been receiving ketamine infusion therapy to treat his depression. Still, he hadn’t consumed any ketamine for one and a half weeks before his death, USA Today reports.
The report stated that considering ketamine only stays in someone’s body for four hours, it did not directly link the drug to Perry’s passing.
“At the high levels of ketamine found in his postmortem blood specimens, the main lethal effects would be from both cardiovascular overstimulation and respiratory depression,” medical examiner Raffi Djabourian reportedly said. “Drowning contributes due to the likelihood of submersion into the pool as he lapsed into unconsciousness; coronary artery disease contributes due to exacerbation of ketamine-induced myocardial effects on the heart.”
The findings made during Perry’s autopsy indicated that he had been “clean for 19 months,” according to PEOPLE, adding that there was no sign of foul play or fatal trauma.
Investigators found other prescription pills and medication at his property but reported none near the pool. The report concluded that while Perry had been a “heavy tobacco user for many years,” he had not been smoking for some time.
Matthew’s Brutally Honest Memoir
Perry battled alcohol and drug addiction for many years and wanted to use his own experiences to help others.
In October 2022, he sat down for an interview with ABC’s Diane Sawyer to promote his memoir, ‘Friends, Lovers, and the Big Terrible Thing,’ and candidly discussed his former struggles with drugs.
“Obviously, because I was on ‘Friends, more people will listen to me. So I’ve got to take advantage of that, and I’ve got to help as many people as I can,” he explained, per ABC News.
Perry confessed to having his first drink at 14 when he was out with his friends. Together, they shared a bottle of wine, and Perry says he liked the taste of alcohol. By the time he turned 18, the ’17 Again’ star admitted to drinking every day.
As he started building his reputation in Hollywood, he held onto the hope that fame would cure his addiction. Instead, it only worsened it. By 2018, he’d been dealing with a years-long addiction to prescription drugs, which had wreaked such havoc on his body that he ended up with a perforated bowel and had to rush to the hospital.
The pills he’d been swallowing for several years had paralyzed his digestive system, and to make matters worse, he also contracted pneumonia. Perry was subsequently placed on life support.
“One of the things I have to deal with is that my family rushed to the hospital and were told that I have a 2% chance to make it through the night,” he told Sawyer. “And, you know, my mom heard that, and my dad heard that.”
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