A rare bacterial infection may be an hidden cause of sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS), an new medical study suggests.

Doctors analyzed autopsy reports on 130 babies who died of SIDS, 32 who had died suddenly as a result of infection, and 33 who had died of non-infectious causes.

Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS), also known as crib death, is the unexpected death of an apparently healthy infant under one year of age.

“We believe that these pathogens are actually causing infection and they may be the cause of SIDS,” said study author Dr. Paul Goldwater of the Women’s and Children’s Hospital and the University of Adelaide.

Kids carry the pathogens in their own intestines, doctors said.

– by Gene J. Koprowski, Editorial Director

Posted: September 12th, 2008 under Developing Diseases, Impaired Immunity, Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS).
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