Editing SIDS (section)

==Definition==
[[File:Sudden infant death syndrome.webm|thumb|upright=1.35|Video explanation]]

The syndrome applies only to infants under one year of age.<ref name="NIH2013Def">{{cite web |date=27 June 2013 |title=Sudden Infant Death Syndrome |url=http://www.nichd.nih.gov/health/topics/sids/Pages/default.aspx |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150223190134/http://www.nichd.nih.gov/health/topics/sids/Pages/default.aspx |archive-date=23 February 2015 |access-date=9 March 2015 |website=National Institute of Child Health and Human Development}}</ref> SIDS is a [[diagnosis of exclusion]] and should be applied to only those cases in which an infant's death is sudden and unexpected, and remains unexplained after the performance of an adequate [[postmortem]] investigation, including:

# an [[autopsy]] (by an experienced pediatric [[pathologist]], if possible);
# investigation of the death scene and circumstances of the death; and
# exploration of the [[medical history]] of the infant and family.

After investigation, some of these infant deaths are found to be caused by suffocation, [[hyperthermia]] or [[hypothermia]], neglect or some other defined cause.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.cdc.gov/sids/aboutsuidandsids.htm |title=Sudden Unexpected Infant Death and Sudden Infant Death Syndrome: About SUID and SIDS |publisher=Centers for Disease Control and Prevention |access-date=April 16, 2016 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160420200947/http://www.cdc.gov/sids/aboutsuidandsids.htm |archive-date=April 20, 2016 }}</ref>

Australia and New Zealand shifted to ''sudden unexpected death in infancy'' (SUDI) for professional, scientific, and coronial clarity:

{{blockquote|The term SUDI is now often used instead of sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) because some coroners prefer to use the term 'undetermined' for a death previously considered to be SIDS. This change is causing a diagnostic shift in the mortality data.<ref>{{Cite web |date=Apr 2008 |title=Preventing sudden unexpected death in infancy |url=http://www.moh.govt.nz/moh.nsf/0/5118C5C5561CEC79CC2573A6000B3BBE |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091212171003/http://www.moh.govt.nz/moh.nsf/0/5118C5C5561CEC79CC2573A6000B3BBE |archive-date=2009-12-12 |website=Ministry of Health}}</ref>}} In addition, the US [[Centers for Disease Control and Prevention]] have proposed that such deaths be called ''sudden unexpected infant deaths'' (SUID) and that SIDS is a subset of SUID.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.cdc.gov/sids/pdf/sudden-unexpected-infant-death.pdf |title=Sudden Unexpected Infant Death |publisher=Centers for Disease Control and Prevention |access-date=April 16, 2016 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160513173510/http://www.cdc.gov/sids/pdf/sudden-unexpected-infant-death.pdf |archive-date=May 13, 2016}}</ref>

===Age===
SIDS has a four-parameter [[lognormal]] [[age distribution]] that spares infants shortly after birth—the time of maximal risk for almost all other causes of non-trauma infant death.

By definition, SIDS deaths occur under the age of one year, with the peak incidence occurring when the infant is two to four months old. This is considered a critical period because the infant's ability to rouse from sleep is not yet mature.<ref name=Kin2009/>