SIDS: Sudden Infant Death Syndrome Analysis

The list of proposed chronic abnormalities is lengthy. To this date, research has confirmed the following: 1) SIDS is due to a dysfunction of the cardiac and/or respiratory systems, and 2) the death of the infant is due to hypo-ventilation of the lungs and periods of complete cessation of breathing or apnea. Hypo-ventilation and apnea cause hypo-perfusion of the tissues with necessary oxygen. Ischemia of tissues results and eventually causes death. Research now centers around discovering the cause of infant hypo-ventilation and apnea.

Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) is a condition that many people still are trying to figure out why it happens to these babies. This syndrome is described as an unexplained death of an infant younger than one year of age. SIDS is frightening because it can strike without warning and affect a good, healthy infant. Most SIDS deaths occur at night and without warning. SIDS victims may have been down for sleep for as little as ten minutes, they show signs of struggle or suffering. Although SIDS is commonly associated with an infants sleep time, and often occurs in the crib. This event is not limited to the crib and may occur anywhere the infant is sleeping, deaths have occurred in

Sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) is the sudden, unexpected death of an infant that remains unexplained after a thorough case investigation which includes an autopsy, a death scene investigation, and a review of the history of the infant and the parents of the infant. Sudden infant death syndrome is the leading cause of death among infants one month to one-year-old. There are many risk factors for SIDS, but the most common and most preventable risk factors are the influence of smoking tobacco - both smoking by pregnant women and environmental tobacco smoke (ETS) - as well as prone sleeping positions of the infant and the type of bedding the infant sleeps on ("[Cigarette Smoke as a Risk Factor of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS)--Assessment of Knowledge and Behavior of Women].").

Sudden Infant Death Syndrome remains the leading cause of post-neonatal mortality (under the age of one) in developed countries. The causes of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome have been puzzling and research is being conducted to solve this catastrophic problem. Having a child under the age of one makes me very concerned, along with any other parent(s), that the possibility of SIDS could affect any infant at anytime, SIDS does not discriminate. I am seeking to find the possible causes to Sudden Infant Death Syndrome so in the future deaths could be avoided.

It still remains a question as to what exactly causes SIDS. There have been various amounts of studies, and many different reasons contributed to SIDS. Many doctors and researchers say that SIDS occurs mostly in pre-mature and low-birth-weight babies along with mothers who smoke and don’t get/take enough care during pregnancy (Carolan, Tabib and Tsou). Both physical and environmental factors have been shown to impact SIDS according to the Mayo Clinic in the United States. The three physical factors associated with SIDS involve brain

     When putting it all together the number of lives births each year, SIDS remains the leading cause of death in the United States among infants between one month and one year of age and second only to congenital anomalies as the leading overall cause of death for all infants less than one year of age.

As I stated in the abstract, Sudden Infant Death Syndrome is the unexpected death of a healthy infant in its sleep usually under the age of one. It is also known as “crib death” because the death usually occurs in the crib. Sudden Infant Death Syndrome claims the lives of approximately 2,500 infants each year. The majority of SIDS deaths occur between 2 and 4 month year olds. The cause of SIDS is usually known and there are a number of causes. Causes of SIDS include: smoking or drinking during pregnancy, inadequate prenatal responsibility, prematurity, inexperienced mothers, smoking near or around the baby, enormous amounts of heating from blankets or pajamas, and placing a baby on its stomach (Floyd R. Livingston Jr., MD. Sudden Infant Death

This could lead to different types of diseases such as; BPD (Bronchopulmonary Dysplasia) , Asthma, or even SIDS (Sudden Infant Death Syndrome). BPD is more commonly found in premature infants but in some cases healthy babies can also get this disease. One of the reasons why BPD is common in premature babies is because their immune systems are weak. BPD is from damage to the lungs caused by mechanical ventilation (respirator) and long-term use of oxygen. This occurs in premature babies because a lot of time they have to be put on oxygen to help them breath until their lungs become stronger. When an infant is diagnosed with a chronic lungs disease it can lead to other types of infections or complications. If a baby has to be put on a ventilator it could cause complications with their lungs. Ventilators force breathing which means that the ventilators will be forcing high oxygen levels into the lungs of an infant or premature baby. This could possibly cause damage to their lungs. Another chronic lung disease that is commonly found in babies is SIDS (Sudden Infant Death Syndrome). SIDS is an unexplained death, it usually happens while the baby is sleeping, it can happen to a healthy baby who is less than a year old. Some physicians say that the cause of SIDS is from the brain stem being defected; the brain stem controls breathing. Out of 60,000

          In the Western world, SIDS is the most common cause of death for infants between two weeks and one year of age, but SIDS also occurs throughout the world. SIDS most commonly happens during sleep, although it can occur anywhere, such as in baby carriages, safety car seats, or

Anthropology is rooted in western dominated knowledge, but this does not mean that “we” in the West have all the answers. In the United States there are unsolved mystery that pertain to both the medical and the anthropology field. In The Essence of Anthropology, sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) is discussed as an issue that results in the death of babies. SIDS has more prominently occurred in the United States and this might be a result of babies independently from their parents. While the practice of having a baby sleep independently is common in the U.S., it is common throughout the world to have a parent to co-sleep with their baby. This may be the answer to reducing the high rates of SIDS in the U.S. and consequently shows that the United

SIDS and how to prevent it, are still limited. The leaders in this field are

Sudden Infant Death Syndrome, or SIDS, is the number one cause of death among babies. It is unexplainable, and happens while the baby is sleeping. It is sometimes known as “crib death” or “cot death.” It is diagnosed after all of the causes of the baby’s death, such as trauma, an infection, heart or lung infection, have been eliminated. In 2010, there was a recorded amount of about two thousand babies that died due to SIDS. Four years later, in 2014, the amount lowered to one thousand five hundred. It often occurs to babies that are less than a year old. SIDS is most common with babies that are in between the ages of two and four months. Ninety percent of the SIDS that have occurred are before the baby reaches to six months. It is interesting

There are two factors that have shown causes to SIDS and those are physical factors and sleeping environmental factors. Physical factors have shown that low birth weights have led to immature brains, which results in less control of automatic processes such as breathing and heart rate. Another physical factor is respiratory infection; many cases have shown that the infants recently had a cold, which could contribute to breathing problems. Sleeping environment factors include where the infant sleeps, position the infant sleeps in, and on what type of bedding the infant sleeps on. When an infant sleep in the same bed as parents, there is an increase of the possibility of the infant to suffocate.

First, there are simply physical factors that may contribute. First, it could obviously be many different types of brain defects, like it not being developed all the way. Another physical factor could be breathing issues. The baby could have a respiratory infection. It is proven that most babies who have died from SIDS has recently had a cold beforehand. Another physical possibility could be low birth weight. This includes premature

Infants born from mothers that smoked are three times more likely to die from Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS), a condition in which babies who appears healthy die suddenly while sleeping, as are babies whose mothers do not smoke during pregnancy. This is also a point of contention between researchers as well. "Children born to mothers who smoked while pregnant, and possibly children whose grandmothers smoked while pregnant, have a higher risk of developing childhood asthma (Child)." Women who smoke during pregnancy are more likely to be born with birth defects such as cleft lip or palate and to have low birth weight.