Cause of Teri Garr’s death and symptoms that led to her diagnosis

Teri Garr actor who died Tuesday at 79was known for her comedic roles, but the star suffered from serious health problems for decades.

Garr’s cause of death was complications from multiple sclerosis, her publicist and friend Heidi Schaeffer said. told NBC News.

She also suffered a brain aneurysm in 2006, which left her in a coma for a week.

Here’s what the actor, who played memorable roles in Young Frankenstein, Tootsie and Mr. Frankenstein, had to say. Mom,” spoke about her health:

Multiple sclerosis

According to scientists, this nervous system disease affects the brain and spinal cord, causing damage that affects how the brain communicates with the body. National Library of Medicine.

Women are more likely to develop the autoimmune disease, the warning signs of which usually appear between the ages of 20 and 40. National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke explains.

Garr said she had vague symptoms that began around the time of filming “Tootsie” in the early 1980s — nearly two decades before she was diagnosed.

“I was running, jogging in the park and just started tripping. It was like my toe—I would start stumbling and then it would go away. Then my arm would start tingling,” she said. told CNN’s Larry King in 2002 when she first spoke publicly about her condition.

“It’s very hard to diagnose and it’s very hard to figure out – it’s hard to know if you have it because things come and go and these things are subtle.”

She began limping and was told she may have an orthopedic problem or a pinched nerve. Garr saw 11 doctors before she was finally diagnosed with multiple sclerosis in 1999. she told Closer Weekly.

The exact cause remains a mystery, but genetic predisposition, infectious diseases and environmental factors can trigger the disease. National Multiple Sclerosis Society.

It lists symptoms including:

• fatigue
• memory problems
• mood changes
• mobility problems
• numbness
• pain
• tingling
• blurred vision

Garr walked with a brace on her leg to treat her limp and received injections of medications to slow the progression of the disease. She had minimal mobility in her right arm and her treatment included steroids, which caused her to gain weight. The Los Angeles Times reported.

There is no cure for multiple sclerosis, but several treatments are approved for the disease.

People with multiple sclerosis may be twice as likely to die early as their healthy peers. study found in neurology.

Complications of multiple sclerosis that can lead to death include respiratory and urinary tract infections, and aspiration pneumonia from breathing body fluids or other objects into the lungs. researchers note.

Garr’s family did not specify what complications of multiple sclerosis led to her death.

Brain aneurysm

In December 2006, Garr underwent brain aneurysm it almost killed her.

“I went to bed to take a nap and my daughter couldn’t wake me up. So, thank God, she called 9-1-1 and they rushed me to the hospital,” the actor told CNN in 2008.

“They drilled a hole in my head and wrapped a coil around my brain so it wouldn’t bleed anymore,” she added in an interview with the Los Angeles Times that same year.

Garr was in a coma for a week, then underwent rehabilitation for two months. “I had to learn to walk again, talk again, think again,” she said, noting that she had to undergo physical, occupational and voice therapy.

A brain aneurysm is a bulge or “bulge” in a weak point in the wall of an artery that, if it becomes large, can burst and cause life-threatening bleeding, according to researchers. National Institutes of Health.

Brain aneurysms, also called cerebral aneurysms, affect about 5% of the population. American Heart Association marked.

High blood pressure, heavy lifting or straining, strong emotions such as anger, and certain medications such as blood thinners may increase the chance of an aneurysm rupturing, according to researchers. American Stroke Association.

It notes that if an aneurysm bleeds, there is a 40% chance of death.

Aneurysm coiling involves guiding thin metal wires to the site of the aneurysm, where they are rolled into a mesh ball. National Library of Medicine explains. Blood clots then form around the coil, sealing the aneurysm and preventing bleeding.

Garr called all of her health problems a “strange gift.”

“It makes you stop, calm down and focus,” she told Closer Weekly.