SIDS, also known as crib death, has received a great deal of public attention during the past few years. In this condition, which has existed for thousands of years, a sleeping infant simply stops breathing. Such sudden deaths in infants have often been thought to be caused by the sleeping mothers lying on the infant. SIDS is rare during the first month after birth, increases gradually to a peak at about 10 weeks, and then declines until it becomes rare again after 6-8 months. It is more common during the winter and spring, among poor; Black, teenage mothers, and mothers who smoke and use alcohol and drugs. A variety of theories, including heart defect, viral infection, and elevated levels of thyroid hormone have been proposed to account for SIDS. Problems with respiration, heart functioning, and sleep have also been explored as possible causes of SIDS. A consensus of research studies indicates that SIDS is the result of a chronic abnormality originating before birth and involving control mechanisms that regulate basic body functions. A susceptibility to SIDS is often detectable from observing the sleeping, crying, sucking, breathing, swallowing, and cuddliness of the infant. Infants who are prone to SIDS tend to be below average in alertness, as measured by an Apgar test administered a few minutes after birth. Newborns whose Apgar scores indicate that they are at risk for SIDS can be connected to an apnea/bradycardia monitor, which sounds an alarm when breathing stops for 15-20 seconds or the heart rate drops below a specified level. To help validate the alarm signal, the monitor should also record the infant's breathing and heart pattern whenever the alarm is activated. In addition to knowing how to use the monitoring equipment, parents need to be able to perform CPR in case the infant's breathing or heart beat stops.....
