MICHELLE Trachtenberg’s cause of death has been revealed after the Gossip Girl star was found dead aged 39.
Trachtenberg’s body was found in her New York City apartment by her mom in February, just days after she posted selfies that left fans concerned for her health.
Now, authorities in New York have said she died from complications due to diabetes, reports TMZ.
The actress is said to have passed away from “complications of diabetes mellitus” according to the medical examiner, who cited lab results.
However, the lab results did not reveal whether Trachtenberg had type 1 or type 2 diabetes.
She was found at around 8am on February 26 at a building in Manhattan, New York City, located near Central Park, by her mother in February.
Photos from Trachtenberg’s luxury Manhattan high-rise showed two forensic vehicles and a government van parked outside.
The coroner’s office initially said her cause of death would remain undetermined because her family requested an autopsy not be performed due to religious reasons.
The medical examiner’s office would automatically do an autopsy if the cause of death was suspected to involve foul play, but there was no suspicion.
Following the latest lab test results, the medical examiner’s office amended the cause of death.
It comes after the Gossip Girl star was said to have underwent a liver transplant in the months before she was found dead in her apartment.
The operation happened in the last year and Trachtenberg is believed to have been experiencing complications from it.
And a week before her death, Trachtenberg shared a throwback look of herself from an awards show with the caption, “I wanted to look like naughty”.
But recent pictures of the actress sparked concern among fans, as they regularly commented to make sure she was okay.
Just days before her reported death, she snapped a selfie and added the caption “the warmth before the storm”.
Friends and former costars previously shared their heartbreak after hearing the news of Trachtenberg’s sudden death.
Ed Westwick, who played Chuck Bass in Gossip Girl, shared a picture of the gone-too-soon actress during her days on the show and said he was “so sad.”
“Sending prayers,” he said in the tragic Instagram story.
Kim Cattrall, who starred in Ice Princess alongside the young actress in 2005, shared a picture of the two together on set.
“Rest in peace sweet Michelle,” Cattrall wrote on Instagram.
Her Buffy co-star Sarah Michelle Gellar also paid tribute posting: “Michelle, listen to me.
“Listen. I love you. I will always love you. The hardest thing in this world, is to live in it. I will be brave. I will live… for you.”
Meanwhile, the Gossip Girl’s neighbors were shocked to learn of her death.
Raphael Noufled, 24, has lived in the building for 20 years and told The U.S. Sun he had limited interactions with the actress but was still stunned to see police and media surrounding his building.
“I walked out this morning to go on a run then I saw [press] guys with the cameras, so I asked around and heard the sad news,” he shared.
“I didn’t know her personally or anything about her health but she seemed alright. So obviously it was a big shock to hear she passed away this morning.
“Gossip Girl is the only show I watched from her, but she was obviously a great actress. People loved her, people are here to pay their respects.”
Trachtenberg began her career as a child, starring in The Adventures of Pete and Pete before landing the lead role in popular kids movie Harriet the Spy.
Throughout her teen years, Trachtenberg continued to make recurring roles in TV shows, most notably in Buffy the Vampire Slayer, where she played Buffy’s sister.
Though many fans remember her from the CW drama series Gossip Girl, where she starred as the character audiences loved to hate, Georgina Sparks.
After news of Trachtenberg’s death emerged, a clip from 2010 where she spoke about her time in school resurfaced.
Then age 24, she revealed she was bullied by her classmates.
“The kids were cruel,” she told the TV host Cat Greenleaf, the former host of Talk Stoop.
“I had a really really horrible time in school. They were terrible and torturous and evil.”
The actress believed the reason stemmed from her fame as a child star.
Trachtenberg also opened up on her time at school on social media.
“The kids were cruel,” she revealed in an Instagram post from 2020.
“There is no need to harp on the past.
“But I still have scars from being thrown down stairs and slammed into lockers head first.”
The actress was born in New York City in 1985 to Jewish immigrant parents.
Source : https://www.the-sun.com/entertainment/14045218/michelle-trachtenberg-gossip-girl-cause-of-death/