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Naya Rivera: Glee star suffered from vertigo that 'would get worse in water' before death, investigative report reveals

Actor reportedly controlled her symptoms with antihistamines 

Annabel Nugent
Saturday 12 September 2020 09:08 BST
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Glee cast hold hands beside the lake where Naya Rivera died
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Naya Rivera’s autopsy, investigative and toxicology reports have revealed some of the circumstances surrounding her death in early July.

Rivera's body was found on 13 July after the 33-year-old went missing from a rented pontoon boat on the California lake, where she was swimming with her four-year-old son five days earlier. Soon after, an autopsy confirmed that the Glee star had drowned by accident.

According to USA Today, who obtained an investigative report by the Ventura County Medical Examiner’s Office, Rivera suffered from vertigo “to the point of vomiting” that “would get worse when she was in the water”.

It states that Rivera controlled her symptoms with antihistamines, and that the actor had previously been treated for her vertigo at Cedars-Sinai Medical Centre in Los Angeles.

The report also shines some light on the events that preceded her drowning. The actor’s four-year-old son, Jorsey Dorsey, told Rivera’s mother, Yolanda Previtire, that he and Rivera had counted “one, two, three” together before jumping off the boat into the lake.

Rivera is most famous for playing Santana Lopez on the musical comedy-drama ‘Glee'

Shortly after they jumped, Rivera instructed Dorsey to return to the boat and helped him onto the vessel, the report says.

Rivera then yelled for help and put her arm in the air before disappearing below the water. The child was later found on the boat alone by another boater. He was asleep and wearing a life vest.

The death certificate says she died within minutes, according to reports.

Toxicology tests found caffeine and low levels of amphetamine and diazepam in Rivera’s system. The autopsy also found a blood alcohol concentration of 0.016 per cent.

The investigative report found that Rivera was prescribed Adderall for anxiety and an unknown medication for a sinus infection.

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