Gene Hackman may have been starving when he died, his final autopsy suggested.
The “French Connection” and “Unforgiven” Oscar winner’s acetone levels indicated he may have not eaten for quite some time before his death at age 95 in February, Fox News reported on Sunday.
The autopsy report noted while acetone is used in household products it’s “also a product of diabetic- and fasting-induced ketoacidosis as well as a metabolite following isopropanol ingestion,” Fox News wrote.
It can also be the result of “prolonged starvation,” according to Healthline.
A host of health woes led to the actor’s demise, according to the examiner’s report, including a “history of congestive heart failure” and “severe chronic hypertensive changes” to his kidneys. He also showed “neurodegenerative features consistent with Alzheimer’s disease.”
In March, the chief medical investigator had already determined Hackman died from “hypertensive and atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease, with Alzheimer’s disease as a significant contributory factor.”
TMZ wrote the mention of Hackman’s acetone levels was “not totally surprising” since his 65-year-old wife, Betsy Arakawa, reportedly died about a week before him in their Santa Fe, New Mexico, home, “and it appears he wasn’t in a healthy enough state to care for himself.”
Hackman tested negative for the rodent-borne hantavirus, which killed his wife.
Their bodies were discovered in separate rooms on Feb. 25, and the ensuing investigation captured the nation’s interest for several weeks.
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