Response to 'Does Cot Death Still Exist?' 

7 February 2008

Embargo: 00:01, 8 February 2008

FSID's response to the BMJ article Does Cot Death Still Exist? published 9 February 2008, Volume 336, pp 302-304

Although cot death is rare - a fact clearly acknowledged in the cot death advice leaflet that FSID and the Department of Health produce jointly - it is still a leading cause of death in infants aged 1-12 months.

If all parents followed the proven risk reduction advice (a circumstance which requires publicity and education) then deaths would become rarer still. FSID believes that parents should be informed about the proven risks.

As to the number of deaths each year, FSID does not inflate figures. There are just over 300 a year. The ONS published a report in 2005 (HSQ 31 Autumn 05, page 82/83) indicating that deaths labelled unascertained and deaths labelled sudden infant death “are used interchangeably by coroners…Research has also shown that the characteristics of babies dying of these two causes are very similar. Based on this evidence it is appropriate to include both groups in any analysis of unexplained infant deaths.”

The presence of risk factors does not explain the cause of death. The vast majority of babies of smoking mothers, of babies slept prone, and of babies slept in a separate room (all risk factors) do not die. There must be something that differentiates those who die from those who do not die. The causes of death are still unknown.

If we did not use the term SIDS there would still need to be a term for describing these deaths.

Media enquiries:
Nicola Peckett, 020 7227 5212
Stacey Kerr, 020 722 5210

 

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