Bob Saget’s Family Sues to Block Other Death Records

Especially photos and video, they say
By Jenn Gidman,  Newser Staff
Posted Feb 12, 2022 7:00 AM CST
Updated Feb 16, 2022 12:44 AM CST
Bob Saget’s Skull Fractures Were Severe
Bob Saget is seen at a screening of "MacGruber" on Dec. 8, 2021, in Los Angeles.   (Photo by Richard Shotwell/Invision/AP, File)

Update: Bob Saget's family is suing the Orange County Sheriff and the medical examiner's office to block further releases of the comedian's medical records, WESH reports. The family will "suffer irreparable harm in the form of extreme mental pain, anguish, and emotional distress" if more is released, the suit says, and no public interest would be served. The suit was filed by Saget's widow and his three daughters, CNN reports. They especially want to ensure no graphic photos or videos are released. Our original story from Friday follows:

Bob Saget's autopsy was released this week, revealing that the 65-year-old comedian had died of "blunt head trauma ... most likely incurred from an unwitnessed fall." That report noted Saget had suffered serious skull fractures, as well as bruising and bleeding on the brain—findings the New York Times says are leaving "a number of unresolved questions" about what exactly happened to Saget that led to these types of injuries. Neurological experts interviewed by the paper say that the head injuries Saget suffered were not what you'd expect from a typical fall, but rather what you'd see in someone who'd had "a baseball bat to the head, or who has fallen from 20 or 30 feet," as Dr. Gavin Britz, the neurosurgery chair at Houston Methodist, puts it.

"This is significant trauma," he adds. Dr. Jeffrey Bazarian, an ER physician and concussion expert at the University of Rochester Medical Center, says that if Saget fell a certain way, it would be like "an egg cracking," in which cracks would spread in the skull "from the back to the front" after the initial hit. And Saget likely didn't brush off his injuries—they were so severe that it likely made him very confused, or even rendered him unconscious. "I doubt he was lucid," Bazarian says. What has some still scratching their heads, however, is that Saget didn't appear to have any other injuries that would indicate a very bad fall. The medical examiner has deemed his death accidental, and the Orange County Sheriff's Office in Florida has said there were no signs of foul play.

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The circumstances surrounding Saget's death are prompting warnings to those who may suffer a seemingly unremarkable head injury. Although not every head bump means you should rush to the ER, there are signs to look for that might indicate you need immediate medical attention—including a headache that won't go away or that's getting worse, nausea or vomiting, loss of consciousness, sudden memory issues, face droopiness, or having a hard time speaking or walking, neurological and brain experts tells NBC News. "If this feels like the worst headache of your life or anything that feels like a strokelike symptom, it's better not to wait on that stuff," says Dr. Shazam Hussain, head of the Cleveland Clinic's Cerebrovascular Center. "Get it checked out and make sure that you're safe." (More Bob Saget stories.)

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