Breakthrough Researh Identifies How and Why Babies Die From Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS)

Sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) is the unexpected death that usually happens during the sleep of healthy babies below 1-year-old. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), about 3,600 infants died suddenly and unexpectedly in 2017 of which 1,400 of those are believed to be due to SIDS.

Those babies died without any specific environmental or medical cause, hence the diagnosis. Even if SIDS ranks third in the leading cause of infant death after birth defects and prematurity, experts are still puzzled about why and how it kills babies. The new research gives light to these questions.

(Photo : Unsplash/Carlo Navarro)
Breakthrough Researh Identifies How and Why Babies Die From Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS)

New Study Confirms Theory of the Cause of SIDS

According to Mayo Clinic, a popular theory of how babies die from SIDS explains that they may have a defect in the part of the brain that controls arousal from sleep and breathing. So when the baby is asleep, it suddenly stops breathing and the defect prevents them from startling or waking up.

The researchers from Sydney were able to confirm this theory. In their study, titled "Butyrylcholinesterase Is a Potential Biomarker for Sudden Infant Death Syndrome" published in eBioMedicine, researchers wrote that the activity of the enzyme butyrylcholinesterase (BChE) could be the basis of SIDS.

The team analyzed dried blood samples from babies who died from SIDS and other unknown causes. They also gather blood samples from healthy babies.

They found that the BChE was significantly lower in SIDS babies than the non-SIDS infant deaths and living babies, Biospace reported. The enzyme is known to play an important role in the brain's arousal pathway, which supports the theory of why SIDS typically happens during sleep.

Dr. Carmel Harrington, the lead researcher for the study, also had a baby who died of SIDS. Since then, she has dedicated her research to find the cause of this mysterious medical phenomenon.

Researchers wrote that this finding shows the possibility of identifying infants at risk of SIDS before death occurs and opens new doors for future studies into specific interventions. Knowing the cause of SIDS will likely lead to a screening test in newborns to hopefully prevent it.

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Risk Factors of SIDS

SIDS can affect any infant and as of now, no interventions have yet been introduced. But some researchers have identified several factors that may increase the risk of SIDS in babies.

As Mayo Clinic discussed on its website, these risk factors may include sex, age, race, family history, secondhand smoke, and being premature due to low birth weight.

Furthermore, the medical website also identified some maternal risk factors that might lead to SIDS most especially during pregnancy. Mothers younger than 20, smoke cigarettes, use drugs or alcohol, and have inadequate prenatal care could affect their baby's risk of SIDS.

Preventing SIDS

Although there are no preventive measures for SIDS, the National Health Service (NHS) nonetheless listed some things that could help prevent sudden and unexpected infant deaths. Here are the following: