Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS)—also known as crib death—is one of the top three causes of black infant death. It is the diagnosis given for the sudden death of an infant that remains unexplained after a complete investigation. According to the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, recent research reports have documented that placing babies to sleep on their backs is associated with a reduction in the incidence of SIDS.

There are concerns, many of which circulate on the Internet, linking some vaccines to multiple sclerosis, sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS), and other problems. To date, several studies have failed to show any connection between immunizations and these conditions. The number of SIDS cases has actually fallen by more than 50% in recent years, whereas the number of vaccines administered yearly continues to rise.

The Foundation for the Study of Infant Deaths (FSID) website can answer your questions on SIDS. They also provide counselling services for bereaved parents, and advice on the best way to look after your baby.

Standard Terminal Arrival Routes (STARs) and Standard Instrument Departures (SIDs) have been established and published as an air traffic control aid in certain complex terminal areas. They help reduce verbage on clearance delivery and control frequencies to provide the pilot with a description of terminal routing. Instructions for pilot use of these coded routes are contained in the Airman's Information Manual. Certain complex terminal areas are covered by Area Charts.

Doctors don't know what causes SIDS. It seems to happen more often in premature and low-birth-weight babies. It also is seen more often in babies whose mothers did not get medical care during the pregnancy and in babies whose mothers smoke. SIDS may also be more likely in babies who were part of a multiple pregnancy (for example, twins or triplets) or whose mothers are younger than 20. When babies sleep on their bellies, they may not breathe well.

SIDS is named the cause of death only when no other cause is found. To find out why a baby died, medical experts review the baby's and parents' medical histories, study the area where the baby died, and do an autopsy.

Place your baby on a firm mattress, such as in a safety-approved crib. Research has shown that placing a baby to sleep on soft mattresses, sofas, sofa cushions, waterbeds, sheepskins, or other soft surfaces greatly increases the risk of SIDS. Remove soft, fluffy and loose bedding and stuffed toys from your baby's sleep area. Make sure you keep all pillows, quilts, stuffed toys, and other soft items away from your baby's sleep area.

SIDS is unexpected, usually occurring in healthy-appearing infants under 1 year of age. A SIDS death occurs quickly and usually during sleep. SIDS is rare during the first month of life. Although SIDS can occur in older infants, most SIDS deaths occur by the end of the sixth month, with the greatest number occurring in infants between 2 and 4 months of age (AAP, 2000). In the United States, more SIDS cases are reported in the fall and winter than in spring or summer.

Each year between 1983 and 1992, the average number of reported SIDS deaths ranged from 5,000 to 6,000. Over the past few years, especially since the mid 1990s, the number of SIDS deaths has declined significantly. The National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS) reported that in 2001 in the United States, 2,236 infants under 1 year of age died from SIDS (NCHS, 2003).