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A collection of links with information about inquests and the Coroner's Court. *
I am unable to offer advice on individual cases.              *        The cause of cot death is not known. However, you can reduce the risk of cot death by the measures. The most important are to lie your baby on his or her back to sleep, and to create a smoke free zone for your baby. What is cot death? Cot death (Sudden Infant Death Syndrome or SIDS) is when a baby dies suddenly for no known reason. Cot death is uncommon. Most cases occur in babies under the age of five months. What can I do to help prevent cot death? Research has shown that the risk of cot death can be reduced. The things you can do fall into three main categories. * Sleeping - learn the best way for your baby to sleep. * Smoking - create a smoke-free home for your baby. * Symptoms of illness - see a doctor if your baby appears unwell. SLEEPING The best way for your baby to sleep is as follows. Make sure that any child minders or babysitters know this too. * Lie your baby on their back to sleep - not on their front or side. Cot death is more common in babies who are put on their front. Also, there is no evidence that babies who lie on their back will choke. (This unfounded worry was why it was common to put babies on their front in the past.) When your baby is able to roll over (aged about 5-6 months) it is safe for them to sleep in whatever position they like. The risk of cot death falls sharply at this age. Like adults they will toss and turn in their sleep and this is fine. * Do not use a pillow - just a firm mattress that fits well into the cot. * Use layers of sheets and thin blankets - rather than duvets, loose covers or a 'baby nest'. Do this at least until the baby is a year old. Duvets and loose covers are more likely to cover a baby's face. Also, using several thin layers allows you to put on or take off layers depending on the room temperature. * Cover your baby up to their shoulders only - the head must be left uncovered. Tuck sheets and blankets under the sides of the mattress to stop them riding up onto the face. * Lie you baby 'feet to foot' - that is, the baby's feet should be just touching the foot of the cot. This means they cannot slip further down the cot under the blankets. * Temperature - babies need to be warm, but not too warm. Being too warm increases the risk of cot death. Have the room at a temperature that is comfortable for you. If your baby is sweating or feels hot then they are too warm. Do not place a baby's cot next to a heater or radiator, or in direct sunlight. Also, do not use water bottles, electric blankets, etc. * Share a room with your baby - until they are at least six months old. A cot next to your bed is the best place for your baby to sleep. * It is best not to share a bed with your baby when you sleep. There is a risk that you might roll over onto your baby when you are asleep, or the baby may get trapped under the bedclothes. Obviously, it is normal to feed and cuddle your baby when you are resting in bed but awake. However, when it is time for you to sleep, the best place for your baby is in a cot next to your bed. In particular, there is an increased risk of bedsharing if: * your baby is was born premature, had a low birthweight, or is less than 3 months old. * you or your partner are a smoker (even if you do not smoke in the home). * you are very tired or you are taking medication that can make you drowsy. * you have taken any alcohol or drugs. * Do not fall asleep with your baby on a sofa, armchair, settee, etc. This has been shown to increase the risk of cot death. ---------------- Other links http://www.fsid.org.uk/babycare.html http://www.babycentre.co.uk/baby/health/cotdeath/ ------------------- Cot death, research The Sunday Telegraph 23/11/08 Parents across Britain have been put off sharing a bed with their new babies by official advice which says it is safer for all children under the age of six months to be put in a cot in their parents' room. This was based on research which appeared to establish a strong link between "co-sleeping" and sudden infant death syndrome or cot death. But the new study found that sharing a bed with a baby was only more dangerous if other factors were also involved. Parents drinking alcohol were the greatest danger for babies who shared their beds. Other risk factors included parents smoking or taking drugs, use of heavy bedding, adult pillows and soft mattresses, and when parents were "excessively tired" defined as having had less than four hours sleep the night before. The British study also shows that infants are at the greatest risk of all if they and their parents fell asleep on sofas. However, it parents avoided all the other risk factors, sleeping in a bed with their baby proved no more risky than putting them in a cot in their parents' room. Childcare experts said last night that the news would be received with relief by many parents, while midwives said it would help them to provide better advice. But experts on sudden infant death syndrome urged caution until new advice was given. Of about 300 UK unexplained infant deaths which occur each year, 45 per cent happen in beds shared by babies and their parents, Experts have known for some time that parents' behaviours and the type of bedroom environment alter the risk of infant death among families who co-sleep, but this is the first detailed study to examine those circumstances in detail. It concludes that once other factors are stripped out, co-sleeping does not in itself increase the risk to the baby. Drink, drugs and extreme tiredness are likely to mean parents fall into a deep sleep, and will be less sensitive to both their body movements and the cues of a baby in distress. Heavy bedding, adult pillows and soft mattresses could squash and restrict the infant. Childcare experts said the findings were "extremely significant," because previous studies have found that mothers who share a bed with their baby are more likely to breast-feed for longer, boosting the child's immune systems and improving their long-term health. Researcher Dr Peter Blair, who will present his research to a conference of the charity Unicef, in Glasgow, this week, said: "This study shows that it is not co-sleeping that is unsafe, but the circumstances under which some parents co-sleep that create risks". He said he hoped the findings would be used to give parents better and more sophisticated advice about whether or not to share a bed with their babies. Dr Blair, from the University of Bristol, said the study of sudden infant deaths occurring in four years across the South West of Britain, was the most detailed study yet of the factors which could make co-sleeping risky. The new research highlights the risks for mothers who follow official advice to put their babies in a cot, but find themselves falling asleep when they rise in the night to feed or comfort their babies. "Over the past decade, the proportion of unexplained infant deaths which occur when parent and child fell asleep on a sofa has doubled, it will show. Prof Cathy Warwick, general secretary of the Royal College of Midwives, said: "It will be really useful to have research shedding light on an incredibly important area. "Until now we have had a default position that in the absence of information about why co-sleeping appears to carry risks, it is best for mothers not to do it. "This will allow us to give much more sophisticated advice, and it will reassure a lot of women who want to share a bed with their baby but feel anxious about it". All the experts warned that parents should think carefully about the extra risks if any alcohol had been drunk. "Unless further details emerge, we would have to assume any alcohol drunk by parents could put the baby at risk," Dr Warwick said. Belinda Phipps, chief executive of the National Childbirth Trust, said: "The findings sound extremely significant. We are really pleased to see that evidence about the safety of co-sleeping is building, because we know it improves breastfeeding rates. "We also know a lot of parents prefer to do it but feel guilty because they are unsure about the risks". She said precise information about the risks attached to type of bed and bedding would be vital for parents who wanted to safely share their bed with their baby. In the absence of clear information about what kind of bed and bedding is safe, the NCT recommends the use of "alongside cots", a three-sided enclosed cot attached to the main bed, as a good compromise. However, the Foundation for the Study of Infant Deaths urged parents to be cautious until the new findings had been published and peer-reviewed. Director Joyce Epstein said that until the evidence had been fully considered, the charity would not change its advice that the safest place for a baby to sleep for the first six months is in a cot in the parents' room. She pointed to other studies which found a small increase in the risk of sudden infant death when bed sharing, even when several known risk factors were excluded. A spokesman for the Department of Health said: "Our advice remains that the safest place for your baby to sleep is in a cot in a room with you for the first six months. However, we will examine this research and its findings carefully." Safely sharing a bed with your child what to avoid Parents sharing a bed with a baby under the age of six months is no more dangerous than putting them in their own cot, provided: Parents don't smoke Parents don't drink Parents don't take drugs Bedding doesn't include adult pillows Bedding is not heavy Mattress is not soft Parents are not "excessively tired" defined as having had less than four hours sleep the night before -------------- |
  Duty to hold inquest. 8.(1) Where a coroner is informed that the body of a person ("the deceased" ) is lying within his district and there is reasonable cause to suspect that the deceased (a) has died a violent or an unnatural death; (b) has died a sudden death of which the cause is unknown; or (c) has died in prison or in such a place or in such circumstances as to require an inquest under any other Act, then, whether the cause of death arose within his district or not, the coroner shall as soon as practicable hold an inquest into the death of the deceased either with or, subject to subsection (3) below, without a jury.                   Circumstances requiring coroner to sit with a jury Queen's Bench Divisional Court Published March 12, 2007 Regina (Paul and Others) v Deputy Coroner of the Queen's Household and Assistant Deputy Coroner for Surrey Regina (Al Fayed) v Same Before Lady Justice Smith, Mr Justice Collins and Mr Justice Silber Judgment March 2, 2007 Where a death occurred in circumstances the recurrence of which might be prejudicial to the health and safety of any section of the public, the coroner was obliged to sit with a jury. The Court of Appeal so held in a reserved judgment granting applications for judicial review brought by (i) Jean Paul, Gisele Paul and Ritz Hotel Ltd, Paris; and (ii) Mohamed Al Fayed into the deaths of Diana, Princess of Wales and Dodi Fayed. The rulings appealed were made on January 8, 2007, by Lady Butler-Sloss that: (i) she had jurisdiction, in principle, to sit as deputy coroner of the Queen's household; (ii) no jury was to be called; and (iii) on the facts, she would sit as deputy coroner of the Queen's household. Section 8 of the Coroners Act 1988 provides: "(3) If it appears to a coroner ... that there is reason to suspect ... (d) that the death occurred in circumstances the continuance or possible recurrence of which is prejudicial to the health or safety of the public or any secion of the public, he shall proceed to summon a jury..." |
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The Coroner's Court |
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