Dummy (pacifier) use and sudden infant death syndrome: Potential advantages and disadvantages

The large decline in deaths due to the sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) in the last 20 years in many countries is largely due to risk-reduction advice resulting from observational studies that examined the relationship between infant care practices and SIDS. Most of this advice remains largely uncontroversial and educators and researchers in...

Postnatal parental smoking: An important risk factor for SIDS

Background: Sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) is the unexpected death of an infant that remains unexplained after a thorough investigation of the circumstances, family history, paediatric investigation and complete autopsy. In Western society, it is the leading cause of post-neonatal death below 1 year of age. In the Netherlands, the SIDS...

Surveillance study of apparent life-threatening events (ALTE) in the Netherlands

SIDS and ALTE are different entities that somehow show some similarities. Both constitute heterogeneous conditions. The Netherlands is a low-incidence country for SIDS. To study whether the same would hold for ALTE, we studied the incidence, etiology, and current treatment of ALTE in The Netherlands. Using the Dutch Pediatric Surveillance Unit,...

Herziene richtlijn Preventie wiegendood [Revised guideline Prevention of cot death]

There are new insights into the pathogenesis of cot death ('sudden infant death syndrome'; SIDS). - Based on these new insights, the Dutch Paediatric Association and the Dutch Child and Youth Health Care Physicians have drawn up a new guideline 'Prevention of cot death', which replaces the consensus statement of 1996. The 2 major differences...

Prevention of sudden unexpected infant death

Sudden infant death syndrome in child care settings in the Netherlands

Background: In the Netherlands, there is a very low incidence of sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) due to effective preventive campaigns. Methods: During the period September 1996 to August 2002, nationwide 161 deaths from SIDS (about 85% of all cases of SIDS during that time) were investigated by the Cot Death Committee of the Dutch...

Slaaphouding en toedekken van zuigelingen in het najaar van 1994 [Sleeping positions and bed clothes of infants in the autumn of 1994]

Objective: To determine whether the sleeping position and the use of duvets in infants in 1994 had changed in comparison with earlier years. Design: Questionnaire survey. Setting: Nationwide investigation in infant welfare centres. Method: 194 infant welfare centres participated in the investigation. In November a questionnaire was completed...