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 SIDS No Longer a Mystery -
New Research Identifies a Potential Biological Cause
Researchers hope to develop a diagnostic test to identify newborns at risk
[Baltimore, MD – October 31, 2006] First Candle/SIDS Alliance, the nation’s leading organization dedicated to infant health and survival, is pleased to announce that researchers at Children’s Hospital in Boston have new autopsy data that provides the strongest evidence yet that sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) is not a ”mystery” disease, but has a concrete biological basis. Based on their findings, the researchers hope to develop a diagnostic test to identify newborns at risk and envision treatments to protect them during the vulnerable period. First Candle is available as a resource, with experts and parents for interviews, for anyone interested in reporting on this important topic!
Despite tremendous success at reducing SIDS rates since inception of the Back to Sleep campaign in 1994, SIDS remains the leading cause of death for infants one month to one year of age. The Back to Sleep campaign warns parents about the dangers of tummy sleeping, soft bedding, bed sharing and tobacco exposure both during pregnancy and after birth as leading risk factors for SIDS. The study results strongly underscore the importance of avoiding these practices in order to save as many lives as possible.
The current study, which will appear in the November 1 Journal of the American Medical Association, is important because it provides more conclusive evidence that a significant number of SIDS babies have a brain disorder. The abnormalities identified in this study suggest that there is a problem in the development of the brain that occurs in utero and after birth as well. According to Dr. Hannah Kinney, senior author of the paper, this opens the window of time available for identifying infants at high risk and provides the opportunity to use drugs and other interventions as the baby passes through the critical first six months of life where the risk for SIDS is the greatest. “My hope is that this research will in some way ease the pain for parents of SIDS victims, helping them understand that their baby’s death was part of a disease process rather than a mystery,” says Kinney.
The abnormalities identified as part of this study appear to affect the brainstem's ability to use and recycle serotonin, a brain chemical which plays a role in communications between brain cells. Serotonin is most well known for its role in regulating mood, but it also plays a role in regulating vital functions like breathing, heart rate, temperature, blood pressure and arousal. While the SIDS cases contained more serotonin using neurons, they appeared to contain fewer receptors for serotonin than did the control cases. The researchers also found that male SIDS infants had fewer serotonin receptors than did either female SIDS infants or control infants. The finding may provide insight into why SIDS affects roughly twice as many males as females.
“This finding lends credence to the view that SIDS risk may greatly increase when an underlying predisposition combines with an environmental risk—such as sleeping face down— at a developmentally sensitive time in early life,” said Duane Alexander, M.D., Director of the NIH’s National Institute of Child Health and Human Development.
The majority (65 percent) of the SIDS cases in the data set were sleeping prone or on their side and 23 percent were sharing a bed at the time of death, indicating the need for continued public health messages on safe sleep practices.
First Candle supports a broad portfolio of research, but has been a primary funder for Dr. Kinney’s research since its inception in 1985. This important extension of her ongoing brainstem research gives us renewed hope that we are on the right path to eliminating SIDS as a cause of death for our children . . . our future.
For more information on First Candle and our efforts to help babies survive and thrive, please visit www.firstcandle.org. Compassionate grief support for all those affected by an infant death is also available 24 hours a day, seven days a week at 1-800-221-7437.
Abstract of JAMA Article
Full JAMA Article
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First Candle/SIDS Alliance is a national, nonprofit health organization dedicated to promoting infant health and survival during the prenatal period through age two with programs of advocacy, education and research, while at the same time providing compassionate grief support to those experiencing a SIDS, stillbirth or other sudden infant death. For more information on helping babies survive and thrive, to access local support services or to make a donation, please call 1-800-221-7437 or visit www.firstcandle.org
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