Researchers Identify Potential Cause of SIDS: Convulsive Seizures

Yesterday, January 4, 2023, the Journal of Neurology published a research article analyzing videos from baby monitors and nanny cams to identify potential causes of sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS). Although providers have historically hypothesized about SIDS, scientists remained unclear on the definitive cause of these sudden and tragic deaths.

The study used data from the New York University (NYU) Sudden Unexplained Death in Childhood Registry and Research Collaborative, approved by the NYU Langone Health Institutional Review Board approximately one decade ago. The study includes case referrals from the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, Germany, and Australia.

While the registry includes sudden deaths from minors between 1 month and 18 years old, the researchers only included data from children over 60 months old, leaving 301 cases with complete medical records reviews and family interviews.

Based on the data, the investigators concluded that children who died before 60 months (5 years) were more likely to have a personal or family history of febrile seizures and experience an upper respiratory infection or fever within 48 hours of death.

Among the 301 cases included in this analysis, 8 deaths were recorded via nanny cams or baby monitors. Excluding one video that did not provide clear visualization, the remaining videos — including 4 boys and 3 girls — were assessed.

The five videos that provided continuous recordings included a convulsive seizure that lasted between 8 and 50 seconds, eventually resulting in the child’s death. Approximately 80% of the patients, 4 children, survived for over 2.5 minutes after the convulsive event.

Although the remaining videos that were not continuous were challenging to evaluate, researchers reported a potential convulsive event.

Based on the study, the researchers concluded, “Audio–visual recordings in 7 toddlers with unexplained sudden deaths strongly implicate that deaths were related to convulsive seizures, suggesting that many unexplained sleep-related deaths may result from seizures.”

While this data is not specific to infants, the insights from this study can prompt additional research into the causes of SIDS, opening the door for potential prevention protocols or safety guidelines.