Review board says babies must sleep safely

Review board says babies must sleep safely

AUSTINTOWN

After the peak of 69 child deaths in Mahoning County in 1993, the number of under-18 deaths consistently has gone down and stayed fairly level since 2006, with 38 recorded in both 2009 and 2010, a report says.

Of the 38 who died in2010, 29 were infants from birth to 1 year old, and three each were age 1 to 4, 5 to 9,and 15 to 17, according to a report by the Mahoning County Child Fatality Review Board, which is coordinated by the Mahoning County District Board of Health. The 2010 statistics are the most recent available.

“While all recommendations in the report are significant, there is a truly preventable cause of death that persists ... children who die in a sleep environment,” the report says.

For this reason, the CFR wants to ensure that the public understands the necessity of providing children with a safe sleep environment, said Patricia Sweeney, county health commissioner.

To prevent infant asphyxiation, the CFR board recommends always placing babies to sleep alone, on his or her back, in a safety-approved “naked crib” with a firm mattress and a well-fitted sheet and without toys, soft bedding, bumper pads or stuffed animals, Sweeney said.

Read more in Sunday’s Vindicator and Vindy.com