SIDS IN SA

It’s almost impossible to say how many babies die from SIDS in South Africa each year because the data is so flawed. In the last Statistics SA report, more than 92 percent of infant deaths were classified as “ill-defined and unknown”. But emergency medicine specialist Dr Natalie Hobbs says this does not mean that 92 percent of infant deaths were all due to SIDS, as other causes, such as “unattended death”, are also included in this statistic. She adds that SIDS deaths in South Africa are also “poorly investigated” due to a paucity of trained experts: “Paediatric pathologists who are able to perform the necessary autopsies on infants who have died from suspected SIDS are only available at the tertiary institutions.” In addition, many deaths first reported to be caused by SIDS turn out to be cases of gastroenteritis and meningitis.