Researchers at the University of Virginia have identified 35 biomarkers that have different values in the blood of infants at risk of sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS), meaning they can not only serve as an alarm bell but also help us to gain a better understanding of the biological mechanisms behind sudden infant death syndrome.
There is a new glimmer of hope that it might be possible to identify infants at risk of sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS), sometimes also known as cot death. Although it is rare and mysterious in many ways, in countries such as the United States it remains one of the main causes of death in children less than one year old.
Researchers from the University of Virginia in Charlottesville have examined various kinds of metabolites (i.e. intermediate or end products of metabolism) in the blood of infants and discovered that differences in them seem to be indicators of a significantly higher risk of SIDS. Therefore, a preventive test could help to identify the children who are most at risk so that targeted therapeutic measures and more careful monitoring can be carried out.
As the scientific journal eBioMedicine (The Lancet group) explains, the neonatal care researchers examined serum samples from 300 children (195 of whom died due to SIDS) included in the Chicago Infant Mortality Study and the National Institutes of Health’s NeuroBioBank. The aim was to assess the levels of 828 metabolites that are known to be involved in processes such as nerve cell communication, breathing and stress response. The researchers wanted to establish whether any of the molecules had changed in the deceased infants, and how. They found differences in 35 specific biomarkers, including fats such as sphingomyelins (which are known to play an important role in brain and respiratory system development) and the amino acid ornithine (which is essential for the proper disposal of ammonia in urine). In addition, they identified four metabolite groups which are also potentially useful due to their association with SIDS.
“Our study is the largest study to date that has attempted to detect how these small molecules in the blood may serve as biomarkers for SIDS,” explained Keith L. Keene, co-author of the study. Further research is now being conducted in an attempt to narrow the field and select a small group of “markers” that can be used to establish a standardised test. Studies of this kind could also provide very useful information about the origins and biological mechanisms behind SIDS.
Apparently healthy children
One official definition of SIDS is the abrupt and unexpected death of an apparently healthy infant, usually during sleep, which remains unexplained after a thorough case investigation, including an autopsy. According to the United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), children who die from SIDS might seem healthy, but they could actually be affected by small abnormalities in the autonomic regulation of cardiovascular and respiratory function, which undergoes further changes in the first weeks of life in a way that can increase risk.
External factors can also lead to a higher risk, such as sleeping in a prone position (chest down).
Going back to the University of Virginia and the possibility of creating a test, the researchers have stressed that further research will be required in order to assess whether the “markers” they have singled out can genuinely be used to identify infants at risk. Either way, their results mark a key milestone in efforts to clear up the mysteries behind SIDS and introduce care that can save young lives.