Latest SIDS Stories

Placing infants on their backs for sleep can help reduce the risk of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS). But a study by Yale School of Medicine researchers and their colleagues shows that while the practice helped reduce the incidence of SIDS, it has reached a plateau since guidelines were released by the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development.Published in the December issue of the Archives of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine, the study is based on data from the National...

Over half of sudden infant deaths occur when the infant is co-sleeping with an adult on a bed or sofa, researchers reported Tuesday.What's more, parents' use of alcohol or drugs could also increase the risk of sudden infant death syndrome.Writing in the British Medical Journal, a team of researchers at the Universities of Bristol and Warwick found that although the rate of SIDS has dropped in the UK, parents needed to be aware of certain actions that could increase the risk of infant...

What doctors recommend to prevent sudden infant death syndrome is not always depicted in women's magazines, U.S. researchers found. SIDS researchers Dr. Rachel Moon, a pediatrician, and Brandi Joyner at Children's National Medical Center in Washington analyzed pictures of sleeping infants in 24 magazines with wide circulation among 20- to 40-year-old women. The researchers evaluated pictures -- including articles and advertisements -- for sleep positions, including whether or not a baby was...

More than one third of photos in women's magazines depicted babies in unsafe sleep positions, according to a new study in Pediatrics. Additionally, the study found that two-thirds of sleep environments depicted in these magazines were also unsafe.Led by SIDS researchers Rachel Moon, MD, a pediatrician, and Brandi Joyner at Children's National Medical Center, the study analyzed pictures of sleeping infants in 24 magazines with wide circulation among 20- to 40-year-old women.The authors...

Nineteen century infant deaths attributed to smothering and overlaying were in all likelihood Sudden Infant Death Syndrome, a U.S. researcher said. Dr. Ariane Kemkes, an independent researcher in Scottsdale, Ariz., said these deaths would have been mislabeled by lawmakers as neglect and even infanticide, because SIDS had not yet been identified. SIDS is the third most prominent cause of death among infants under age 1, accounting for 30 percent to 55 percent of infant deaths during their...

Study suggests tragic 19th century infant deaths mislabeled as neglect and infanticide were in fact crib deaths19th century infant deaths attributed to smothering and overlaying, by either a co-sleeper or bedding, were in all likelihood crib deaths, or Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS). These deaths would have been mislabeled by lawmakers as neglect and even infanticide, because SIDS had not yet been identified, according to Dr. Ariane Kemkes, an independent researcher from Scottsdale,...

Educated Moms unaware of conclusive pediatric study CLEVELAND, June 9 /PRNewswire/ -- Haledyne and HealthyChildrenToday.com announced the surprising results of its recent survey of 542 Moms. More than 70 percent of respondents were unaware of the conclusive and widely-covered study by the Archives of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine which found that using a fan while a baby is sleeping can reduce the risk of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) by 72 percent. SIDS, or a sudden...

A specific class of drugs could be effective in treating babies vulnerable to sudden infant death syndrome, Canadian researchers suggest. Researchers at McMaster University in Hamilton said when mothers-to-be smoke during pregnancy the exposure of the fetus to nicotine results in its inability to respond to decreases in oxygen -- known as hypoxia -- which may result in a higher incidence of SIDS. In the study involving rats, researchers found the diabetic medication glibenclamide can reverse...

A new study has identified a specific class of pharmaceutical drugs that could be effective in treating babies vulnerable to Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS), because their mothers smoked during pregnancy.According to researchers at McMaster University, exposure of the fetus to nicotine results in the inability to respond to decreases in oxygen"”known as hypoxia"”which may result in a higher incidence of SIDS. In the same study on rats, they found that the diabetic medication...

In a major study on Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS), German researchers believe they may have found several previously unrecognized risk factors for the disease, such as sleeping away from home and sleeping outside of the parent's bedroom.Dr. Mechtid M. Vennemann of the University of Munster explained in a recent medical journal article that various studies in the 1980's and 1990's revealed that sleeping face down presents a significantly increased risk of SIDS.  Following these...