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Clinical Reference Systems: Pediatric Advisor 10.0
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Suffocation Deaths, Prevention of

Description

Most infant suffocations occur when babies are placed face down on a soft surface that they sink into. Infants who are 0 to 4 months old have the greatest risk of suffocating. These young infants don't have enough strength to lift their heads and turn their faces so that they can breathe. Many of these deaths occur when a baby naps at the home of a friend who doesn't have a crib.

Another cause of suffocation in young infants should be mentioned. Small babies have been smothered by mothers who inadvertently fell asleep on top of them. If you nurse your baby in your bed at night, be careful. Try to keep your baby in a crib next to your bed.

Suffocation deaths account for some crib deaths (sudden infant death syndrome, or SIDS). Despite extensive research, the cause of other crib deaths remains unknown. True SIDS can't be predicted or prevented. There is one exception: smoking in the house greatly increases the risk of SIDS and should be avoided.

Prevention of Suffocation in Infants

To be safe, place your young baby on his back in a crib with a firm mattress. As of 1992, this is the sleep position recommended by the American Academy of Pediatrics for healthy infants during the first 6 months of life. Sleeping on the side is an acceptable alternative, but the back is safer.

Soft surfaces are unsafe for babies even if they are placed on their backs. (Reason: Someone, such as another child, might turn them over.)

You can prevent these tragic deaths by suffocation by never putting young infants on the following soft surfaces:

  • waterbeds
  • sheepskin rugs or mattress covers
  • soft pillows, such as bean-bag or bead-filled pillows
  • any weak, spongy surfaces, including soft mattresses and comforters
  • mattresses covered with plastic bags.

Prevention of Suffocation in Toddlers

Older infants and toddlers can be suffocated by plastic bags or sheets of plastic. These accidents usually occur when they pull the plastic over their heads or crawl into plastic bags. Carefully dispose of any plastic bags, or keep them away from children less than 3 years old. Examples of such products are:

  • plastic dry-cleaning bags
  • plastic shopping bags
  • plastic trash bags.

Written by B.D. Schmitt, M.D., author of "Your Child's Health," Bantam Books.
Copyright 1999 Clinical Reference Systems