Sudden Infant Death Syndrome Essay -- Crib Death SIDS

Sudden Infant Death Syndrome   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Sudden infant death syndrome, better known as S.I.D.S., is one of the leading causes for the inflated infant mortality rate in this country today. It is often misunderstood or unrecognizable. For the most part, the causes of SIDS are unknown to the general public. This is changing, however, as public awareness is ever increasing. Thus, the purpose of this paper will be to explain sudden infant death syndrome and its known or suggested causes. Also, the history of SIDS, the problems and emotional suffering that results from the loss of a child, the toll it takes on the surviving sibling, and possible counseling or other help that is available for parents who may have lost a child to SIDS are such areas that will be explored. Overall I hope to achieve a better understanding of all these suggested topics within the body of the paper.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  SIDS is also commonly referred to as crib death. It is said to claim approximately in the range of 6,000 to 7,000 babies a year within the continental United States alone, with a slight increase each year (Bergman xi). This would seem to be an astounding figure, but when the figure of the total amount of babies that are born in the United States is compared to that of the number of deaths due to SIDS, it accounts for only a small percentage. It is a small percentage that hopefully can be reduced. And to any parents, the loss of just one child is definitely one too many, despite of the statistics that are currently available. During the first week of life is where most deaths that are associated with prematurity dominate, SIDS is the leading cause of death among infants under one year of age, according to Bergman. It ranks second only to injuries as the cause of death in children less than fifteen years of age. An unknown fact is that SIDS takes more lives than other more common diseases such as leukemia, heart disease or cystic fibrosis (Bergman 24). Ironically it was not until the middle of the 1970’s until SIDS was no longer ignored as being a cause of death. For the most part, no research was being conducted, leaving families and victims left to wonder why their babies died (Mandell 129). For the family and friends of the family, who also are victims, this was definitely a tragedy. Not knowing the cause of death had to have caused physical and emotional ... ... Gregory, Geoff. "The Discovery of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome." The Journal of the American Medical Association 264 (1990): 2731. Kahn, A., et al. "Problems in Management of Infants With an Apparent Life Threatening Event." Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences 533 (1988): 78-88. Limerick, Sylvia. "Family and Health Professional Interactions." Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences. 533 (1988): 145-154. Malloy, Michael H. "Sudden Infant Death Syndrome and Maternal Smoking." American Journal Of Public Health. 82 (1992): 1380-182. Mandell, Frederick, et al. "the Sudden Infant Death Syndrome." Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences. 533 (1988): 129-131. Mandell, Frederick, et al. "The Surviving Child in the SIDS Family." Pediatrician. 15 (1988): 217-221. Martin, Richard, J. Respiratory Disorders During Sleep in Pediatrics. New York: Futura Publishing Co., 1990. Powell, Maria. "The Psychological Impact of SIDS on Siblings." Irish Journal Of Psychology. 12 (1991): 235-247. Raub, William. "Chronic Fetal Hypoxia May Predispose Infants to Sudden Infant Death Syndrome." The Journal of the American Medical Association. 264 (1990): 2731.