Metabolic Pattern at Birth Linked to Sudden Infant Death Syndrome
By Elana Gotkine HealthDay Reporter
MONDAY, Sept. 9, 2024 -- Infants with sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) have a distinct metabolic profile at birth, according to a study published online Sept. 9 in JAMA Pediatrics.
Scott P. Oltman, from the University of California San Francisco, and colleagues examined and modeled the association between routinely measured newborn metabolic markers and SIDS in a case-control study nested within a retrospective cohort. The study population included infants born in California between 2005 and 2011, with full metabolic data collected as part of routine newborn screening (NBS). SIDS cases were matched to controls in a 1:4 ratio; the study included 354 cases and 1,416 controls.
The researchers found that in a multivariate analysis, 14 NBS metabolites were significantly associated with SIDS. For a 14-marker SIDS model, including eight metabolites, the area under the receiver operating characteristic curve was 0.75 and 0.70 in the training and test sets, respectively. A total of 20 of 32 infants (62.5 percent) in the test set with model-predicted probability greater than 0.5 had SIDS. Compared with those with a model-predicted probability less than 0.1, these infants had 14.4-fold higher odds of having SIDS.
"These findings suggest that metabolic profiles at birth may have utility for individualized, targeted counseling aimed at identifying infants with an increased vulnerability to SIDS," the authors write.
Several authors disclosed having related patents pending; one author reported having a patent issued.
Abstract/Full Text (subscription or payment may be required)
Disclaimer: Statistical data in medical articles provide general trends and do not pertain to individuals. Individual factors can vary greatly. Always seek personalized medical advice for individual healthcare decisions.

© 2025 HealthDay. All rights reserved.
Posted September 2024
Read this next
Helping Others Linked to Higher Level of Cognitive Function
THURSDAY, Aug. 21, 2025 -- Helping others, both via formal volunteering and informal helping, is associated with higher levels of cognitive function and slower cognitive decline...
TAR-200 Monotherapy Promising for BCG-Unresponsive Bladder Cancer
THURSDAY, Aug. 21, 2025 -- For patients with Bacillus Calmette-Guérin (BCG)-unresponsive high-risk non-muscle-invasive bladder cancer (NMIBC), an intravesical...
Work-Related Income Drops for Parents of Children Diagnosed With Type 1 Diabetes
THURSDAY, Aug. 21, 2025 -- Work-related income decreases sharply for mothers and fathers of children diagnosed with type 1 diabetes, with similar effects across sociodemographic...
More news resources
- FDA Medwatch Drug Alerts
- Daily MedNews
- News for Health Professionals
- New Drug Approvals
- New Drug Applications
- Drug Shortages
- Clinical Trial Results
- Generic Drug Approvals
Subscribe to our newsletter
Whatever your topic of interest, subscribe to our newsletters to get the best of Drugs.com in your inbox.