Bob Saget's widow remembers him in an emotional interview 0:42
(CNN) --
"Full House" star Bob Saget's death from head trauma is a cautionary tale and a reminder of what has come before.
On Wednesday, Saget's family released a statement saying authorities had "determined that Bob died of head trauma."
Bob Saget's family says authorities determined he died of head trauma
"They have concluded that he accidentally hit the back of his head on something, ignored it and went to sleep," the statement said.
"There were no drugs or alcohol involved."
Saget, who was 65, had been on a comedy tour at the time of his death and was found dead in his Orlando, Florida hotel room.
No information was offered on how Saget might have hit his head.
CNN Chief Medical Correspondent Sanjay Gupta said it sounded like a possible "hemorrhage in the upper part of the brain" that could have caused a "subdural hematoma."
advertising
"In this scenario blood pools on top of the brain and creates pressure on the brain," Dr. Gupta explained to CNN's Don Lemon using a diagram.
"The thing about the brain, unlike any other organ in the body, is that it's obviously embedded in the hard skull so it has nowhere to go if you have this kind of pressure on it."
That pressure on the brain and brain stem can cause a person to lose consciousness and their ability to breathe on their own.
"It may have been a pretty big hit to the head," Gupta said.
"Maybe a fall in the bathroom, or at the head of the bed, you don't think about it. Little veins can tear as a result of that bump and blood can start leaking out."
Saget's death reminded some of Liam Neeson's wife, the late actress Natasha Richardson, who died after hitting her head during a ski lesson at a resort in Quebec, Canada, in 2009.
Richardson, then 45, reportedly initially refused medical treatment after the fall.
She was taken by ambulance to a hospital hours later after complaining of a headache.
Mark Shand, the younger brother of Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall, wife of Prince Charles, died in 2014 after falling and hitting his head on a sidewalk in New York.
He was 62 years old.
Bob Saget's family tragedy that made him an activist
Gupta said subdural hematomas are "much more common than people realize" and can develop over hours or even weeks.
Signs to look for include headache, slurred speech, confusion, nausea and vomiting as indications that the person should seek medical treatment, he said.
Taking blood thinners (it's not known if Saget did) can also make a person susceptible to these types of bleeds.
"I don't want to suggest that everyone who hits their head needs to get a [CT scan, also known as a CAT scan]," Gupta said.
"Most don't need it, obviously. But if it's a major stroke, if they're on blood thinners... and again those symptoms: worsening headaches, confusion, nausea, vomiting, slurred speech, things like that. they're unusual. You should definitely go get checked out."
Bob Saget
