Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS)

Dawn Mroczkowski

What is SIDS?

What is SIDS?

Sudden Infant Death Syndrome is a unexplained and unexpected death. It's also commonly known as "crib death" since a supposedly healthy baby will pass away in their sleep. This can happen to babies that are less than a year old. There is no defined cause to SIDS.

Risks of SIDS

There are no symptoms or signs of SIDS but there are some things that can put your baby at risk of SIDS:

  • Mother is under the age of 20
  • Having a lot of siblings close to age
  • Being born prematurely or underweight
  • Being a boy
  • Certain ethnic backgrounds
  • Suffering from an Apparent Life Threatening Event (ALTE)
  • Sleeping on stomach
  • Mothers who smoke during pregnancy
Ways to Prevent SIDS

Ways to Prevent SIDS

  • Always have the baby sleep on his/her back
  • Avoid soft bedding
  • Make sure room temperature is not too hot
  • Give the baby a pacifier to sleep
  • Have your baby sleep in their crib in the same room as you
SIDS statistics

SIDS statistics

  • About 1,500 infants died from SIDS in 2013.
  • SIDS is the leading cause of death for babies between 1 month and 1 year old.
  • 90% of deaths happen before the baby is 6 months old.
  • Babies who sleep on their stomach are 5 times more likely to have SIDS

What to do/ Who you should call if you think your baby has SIDS?

  • If the baby is involved in any of the preventative risks above, try to fix them.
  • If it is too late and the baby has died, call 911.

Citations

*https://www.nichd.nih.gov/sts/about/SIDS/Pages/fastfacts.aspx (SIDS Statistics)

*http://www.cjsids.org/resource-center/sids-statistics.html (SIDS Statistics)

*http://www.medicinenet.com/sids/article.htm (Definition)

*http://www.nytimes.com/health/guides/disease/sudden-infant-death-syndrome/overview.html (Signs and Symptoms)

*http://www.webmd.com/parenting/baby/tc/sudden-infant-death-syndrome-sids-overview (Signs and Symptoms)

*http://www.babycenter.com/baby-sleep-safety (Risks and Preventions)

*http://www.npr.org/2011/07/15/137859024/rethinking-sids-many-deaths-no-longer-a-mystery (What to do/ Who to Call)