USA: Researchers link abnormality in brain stem to Sudden Death Syndrome in infants

U.S. scientists reporting in the Journal of the American Medical Association, say they have found the strongest evidence yet that Sudden Death Syndrome, or SIDS, is caused partly by a genetic disorder, which may one day be treatable. The study funded by the National Institutes of Health found that babies who died mysteriously in their sleep had abnormalities in the part of the brain that controls breathing, heart rate, blood pressure and arousal. The problems appear to affect the brainstem's ability to process a key messenger neurotransmitter known as serotonin. That abnormality impairs the brain's ability to sense high amounts of carbon dioxide and low oxygen levels, a normal protective measure that would help prevent asphyxiatition, he team said. Scientists say SIDS babies were particularly at risk in situations where they began breathing in their own recycled breath, such as when they are sleeping face-down or have their faces covered by bedding. A large body of research has already shown that putting a baby to sleep on its stomach greatly increases the risk of sudden infant death syndrome. There are around 300 cot death cases each year in the UK. senior author Hannah Kinney, of the Boston Children's Hospital, said the new findings provide evidence that SIDS is not a mystery but a disorder that can be investigatd with scientific methods, and some day, may be identified and treated. In the JAMA study, researchers examined tissue from the brainstems of 31 cot death babies and 10 who died of other causes. Scientists found that the brainstems of the SIDS infants had more nerve cells (neurons) that manufacture and use serotonin, one neuro chemical which regulates mood, and helps control vital functions like breathing and blood pressure. Dr Marian Willinger, National Institute Of Child Health And Human Development said,"That level of unknown and mystery has been so hard for a parent who has lost a baby. And now, some of that mystery has been removed."

ITN Source | November 1, 2006

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