Such an extensive head injury would likely have left the actor confused, if not unconscious, experts said.Bob Saget, the comedian and actor, died after what appeared to be a significant blow to the head, one that fractured his skull in several places and caused bleeding across both sides of his brain, according to an autopsy report released on Friday.

The findings complicated the picture of Mr. Saget’s death that has emerged in recent days: Far from a head bump that might have been shrugged off, the autopsy described an unmistakably serious set of injuries that would at the very least have probably left someone confused, brain experts said.

The report, prepared by Dr. Joshua Stephany, the chief medical examiner of Orange and Osceola counties in Florida, ascribed Mr. Saget’s injuries to a fall.

“It is most probable that the decedent suffered an unwitnessed fall backwards and struck the posterior aspect of his head,” Dr. Stephany wrote, referring to the back of the skull.

If the actor struck his head hard enough, and in just the wrong place, it is possible that fractures would have extended to other parts of his skull, brain injury experts said. Situations where someone cannot break their fall are even more dangerous.

“It’s like an egg cracking,” said Dr. Jeffrey Bazarian, an emergency physician and concussion expert at the University of Rochester Medical Center. “You hit it in one spot, and it can crack from the back to the front.”

But experts said that with such an extensive injury, it was unlikely that Mr. Saget would have intentionally ignored it. The injury would likely have left him confused, if not unconscious.

“I doubt he was lucid,” Dr. Bazarian said, “and doubt he thought, ‘I’m just going to sleep this off.’”

UPDATE 9:18 AM PT -- A judge has granted Bob's family the temporary restraining order it requested to block the release of photos from the scene in his hotel room.



Bob Saget's death is creating a mystery for many experts, who wonder how he suffered such a severe skull fracture ... and what exactly he hit -- but authorities are firm on what didn't happen, and they think the injury was caused by something connected to the bed.

As we've reported, Bob died from a brain bleed after hitting his head on something. Sources with direct knowledge of the investigation tell us the Medical Examiner and police are clear there was no foul play, and they're certain the blow to his head had to happen in the hotel.

We're told the injury to his head was severe enough that they're sure he could not have made the 2-hour drive from Jacksonville to the Ritz-Carlton in Orlando.

But, here's the mystery ... some medical experts say the skull fracture is consistent with being hit by a bat, or falling as far as 30 feet. Obviously, that kind of fall didn't happen, but as for Bob being struck -- we're told the electronic front door lock to his hotel room shows no one else entered the room. Once Bob entered, the next time the door opened was when hotel staff found him in the afternoon.

Our sources say the authorities say it's most likely Bob struck a portion of the bed's headboard that is not padded. We're told it's wood, and the best guess is he hit his head. Since he was under the covers, they believe he quickly lost consciousness. What's interesting ... although authorities on the scene felt the headboard scenario was the most likely, the Medical Examiner never mentioned it.

Rather, the M.E. theorizes it was an "unwitnessed fall backwards."

We're told the authorities who discovered Bob's body did not see a bruise on his head. We're told the bruise was only discovered during the autopsy.

Saget's family has filed a lawsuit in Orange County, Florida to block the release of photos from the hotel room -- because under Florida law police could go public with the images.

...but as for Bob being struck -- we're told the electronic front door lock to his hotel room shows no one else entered the room. Once Bob entered, the next time the door opened was when hotel staff found him in the afternoon.