What does the autopsy show in SIDS?
As mentioned, the autopsies of babies who die of SIDS show no cause of death. Even very experienced pathologists who perform autopsies on these babies can find no adequate explanation. Their respiratory tract may be mildly inflamed. A slight excess of fluid may appear in the air spaces of their lungs (although not enough to account for the death). It is also likely that pinpoint hemorrhages, called petechiae, will show up in the thymus gland and the membranes covering the lungs. But these did not cause the baby to die. In perhaps 15% to 20% of all infants who have died suddenly, the cause of death may prove to be an unsuspected cardiac malformation or a severe, rapidly developing infection. A diagnosis of SIDS, however, is reserved for those deaths that cannot be explained. An autopsy can answer the family’s questions about whether a baby’s death was due to a known cause. If the cause is known, the death, by definition, cannot be placed in the category known as Sudden Infant Death Synd