Mum Calls for More Research For SIDS After Her Four-Week-Old Son Suddenly Died

A mother is urging for more research into sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) after her four-week-old son suddenly died.

Mum, Claire Pringle, 40, from London, lost her son, Thomas to ‘cot death’ in August last year, but doctors were unable to find the exact cause.

Ms Pringle described how she was over the moon upon learning that she’s pregnant despite her age and being single, since she was not in a relationship with her son’s father. She was happier knowing that the scans showed a healthy baby boy was on the way.

In August 2015, with Thomas two weeks overdue, Ms Pringle was induced and following a four-day labour, she was excited with her new arrival who was perfectly healthy at 10lbs. However, four weeks later, her world crumbled when she woke at 3.30am to feed her son, but found him unresponsive in his cot.

“I don’t know whether I heard something or whether it was just the normal routine of waking up, but I decided to go and check on him and he was unresponsive. He just looked like he was sleeping,” she said.

She immediately called emergency services and paramedics tried their best to revive Thomas but the baby showed no signs of life. They then rushed Thomas to nearby King’s College Hospital where, after a gruelling 45-minute wait, a consultant delivered the devastating news that there was nothing more they could do for Thomas.

An initial post-mortem came back inconclusive and, following subsequent analysis, a coroner was forced to conclude it was sudden infant death syndrome – cause unknown.

Ms Pringle said she simply ‘couldn’t accept’ that there was no explanation for her son’s death. “At least if I knew a reason, it would provide closure,” she said.

Now Ms Pringle is focusing on raising money for The Lullaby Trust which provides specialist support for bereaved families and funds research into SIDS. She said that less than 300 babies die from cot death each year, and it doesn’t get the focus it used to.

“I personally believe there must be a reason. I can’t understand that there is no reason, a healthy baby doesn’t just die.

“I don’t think, for me, I’ll ever get an answer. I can’t be stuck in limbo hoping for that answer – but at least if more research is done, it might help another mother like me,” she said.

Source: Dailymail.co.uk