Sudden Infant Death Syndrome
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.
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 ...
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First, I will give out some statistics of infant mortality rates in America. According to an Amnesty International report, two maternal deaths occur every day for African-American women. Even though 99% of birth-related deaths happen in developing countries, these numbers for African American women in a country with world renowned health facilities are discouraging.
O'Connor, P. (2008, October 18). US infant mortality rate now worse than 28 other countries. Retrieved June 9, 2010, from World Socialist Web Site: http://www.wsws.org/articles/2008/oct2008/mort-o18.shtml
the whole number of infants at a certain age, who are born of parents in effect
In 1969, researchers agreed to define SIDS as “the sudden death of an infant or young child, which is unexpected by history, and in which a thorough postmortem examination fails to demonstrate an adequate cause of death” (Bergman, 1970).
Research performed during the last twenty years shows that youngsters beneath age 15 are more likely to go through a head injury even as skiing or skiing than any other age organization.
When you are pregnant, you are not just "eating for two." You also breathe and drink for two, so it is important to carefully consider what you give to your baby. If you smoke, use alcohol or take illegal drugs, so does your unborn baby.
Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) or "crib death" is an abrupt and inexplicable death of an apparently healthy infant. Most of the cases involve infants from ages 1-12 months, and the event occurs during the night. Various theories have been postulated from research results but without consistency of the etiology. Since the death is sudden, prior diagnostic criteria or patterns are not available for correlation, although some near-miss infants have been followed. A number of possibilities have been documented in current literature, to include beta-endorphin changes, abnormal temperature regulation, pineal abnormalities, carotid body irregularities, lead poisoning, elevated fetal hemoglobin, brainstem immaturity, and cerebral hypoperfusion. The following is an overview of these pathologies in their relation to Sudden Infant Death Syndrome.
The United States government has put educational and research programs into effect due to the severity of the deaths from SIDS. As a result, from the time period of 1979 to 2010, the SIDS mortality rate dropped from 150 to 50 (out of every 100,000 live births). (Appendix C).
Alterman, D. M. (2013, August 2). Considerations in Pediatric Trauma. In Medscape. Retrieved March 25,
Infant mortality is considered a worldwide indicator of a nation’s health status. The United States still ranks 24th in infant mortality compared with other industrialized nations, even though infant mortality has declined steadily over the past several decades. Compared with the national average in 1996 of 7.2 deaths per 1,000 live births, the largest disparity is among blacks with a death rate of 14.2 per 1,000 in 1996 which is almost 2½ times that of white infants (6 deaths per 1,000 in 1996). American Indians as a whole have an infant death rate of 9 deaths per 1,000 in 1995, but some Indian communities have an infant mortality rate almost twice that of the national rate. The same applies to the Hispanic community, whose rate of 7.6 deaths per 1,000 births in 1995 doesn’t reflect the Puerto Rican community, whose rate was 8.9 deaths per 1,000 births in 1995.
Motor vehicle crashes are the leading cause of death for United States teens.1 In the first month of driving for a teen their crash risk is particularly high.5,6 Fourteen percent of the U.S. population is represented by young people of the ages fifteen to twenty. However they account for thirty percent (Nineteen billion dollars) of the total costs of motor vehicle injuries among males, and twenty-eight percent (Seven billion dollars) of the total costs of motor vehicle injuries among females. In 2012, two thousand eight hundred and twenty-three teenagers, between the ages of thirteen to nineteen, died in the United States from crash injuries.2 Seventy-nine percent of teenagers killed in crashes in 2012 were...
Statistics show the impact that preemies are causing as the rate of preterm birth increases every day. Any part of the world is affected no matter how advanced they are in technology. “One of every eight infants born in the United States is premature babies” (Medline Plus). These statistics are extremely high, however people can change it by getting involved in the community and helping preemies have a less chance to lose in their battle for life. In 2003; 499,008 infants were born prematurely (National Center for Health Statistics). The rates of preterm births have increased over the years. "In 1995: 11.0% of live births were born preterm, In 2006: 12.8% of live births were born preterm"(March of Dimes-Peristats). As the numbers keep increasing, many families are suffering and losing hope for they’re babies. African American women have the highest rate of preterm birth in 2004 with a 17.6% (Reedy, 2007). These statistics demonstrate the high frequenc...
all over the world come to the U.S. to give birth to U.S. citizens. The parents of these children
study shows that there is a greater risk giving birth than when having an abortion. Abortion
Isolation becomes a key component in that process. Growing up the child will isolate themselves from their family. Families are a constant reminder of the grief that is inside of the child due to the loss of their parent. That heartache is the very thing that the child wants to forget. Therefore, the child will evade all costs to bring up the deceased parent. Whenever I visited my family, I would deter from the conversation whenever my father was brought up into the conversation. Simultaneously, the fear of losing another family member will always be prevalent in the child’s life. Every medical scare will impact the child even deeper, because of this fear. It takes a lot of courage and strength to overcome the grief and the fear of being vulnerable again. With time comes acceptance. Gradually opening oneself up to others will not just make the child face their emotions, but learn to accept the death of their parent. Surrounding oneself with the family that the child once distanced themselves from will make more sense of the emotions coursing through their mind. Sharing stories, looking at old photographs, and even watching old home videos will assist the child to become more comfortable with the topic of the parent and even aid the child to appreciate the time spent with