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sudden infant death syndrome

American  

noun

Pathology.
  1. death from the sudden cessation of breathing (apnea) of a seemingly healthy infant, almost always during sleep, sometimes traceable to a chronic oxygen deficiency. SIDS


sudden infant death syndrome British  

noun

  1. SIDS. a technical term for cot death

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

sudden infant death syndrome Scientific  
/ sŭd′n /
  1. A fatal condition that affects sleeping infants that are less than one year old and appear to be healthy. It is characterized by a sudden cessation of breathing and is thought to be caused by a defect in the central nervous system.

  2. Also called crib death SIDS


sudden infant death syndrome Cultural  
  1. Also called crib death, the deaths of sleeping infants less than a year old for unexplained reasons.


Etymology

Origin of sudden infant death syndrome

First recorded in 1970–75


Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

See Examples For:

Instead, he deferred to an emergency room doctor’s diagnosis of sudden infant death syndrome, or SIDS.

From Salon ● Dec. 3, 2024

Overheating is one of the potential causes of sudden infant death syndrome.

From BBC ● Nov. 30, 2023

The high incidence of low birth weight and sudden infant death syndrome in such communities was a focus of the program.

From New York Times ● Jul. 23, 2023

Paranoia, when you’re a parent, is everywhere, adds Wu, recalling how she Googled about sleep training when she had her baby — and got a hit about sudden infant death syndrome.

From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 16, 2022

The other two deaths were recorded as sudden infant death syndrome.

From Seattle Times ● May 18, 2022

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