Characteristics That Distinguish Abusive From Nonabusive Causes of Sudden Unexpected Infant Deaths

BACKGROUND

Fatal child abuse can be mistaken for sudden unexpected infant death (SUID) in the emergency department setting. It is unknown if there are characteristics that distinguish abusive from nonabusive causes of SUIDs in the emergency department.

METHODS

Using a matched case-control design, we reviewed the medical examiner records of deaths of infants younger than 12 months who were found unresponsive at a residence, required cardiopulmonary resuscitation, and had a complete forensic autopsy between 2009 and 2015. Infants with a manner of death as homicide were cases; controls were those with the manner of death as accident, natural, or undetermined. Each case was matched with 5 controls based on age (months). Differences between cases and controls were evaluated with respect to demographic, parental, and household characteristics and clinical outcomes.

RESULTS

We identified 12 cases (homicides) and 169 controls (nonhomicides), of which 60 were selected for the matched analysis. We found no significant differences between cases and controls with respect to age, race, sex, maternal substance use, Child Protective Services involvement prior to death, presence of male head of household, surviving siblings, or emergency medical services transport. Cases were more likely to have Child Protective Services involvement at the time of death (83% vs 38%; P = 0.01), sentinel injuries (odds ratio, 9.67; 95% confidence interval, 1.30-122.43), and return of spontaneous circulation (odds ratio, 29.99; 95% confidence interval, 3.70-241.30).

CONCLUSIONS

Child Protective Services agency involvement at time of death, sentinel injury, and return of spontaneous circulation were more often associated with abusive causes of SUID. Further study is needed to confirm these findings.

Efficacy of Driving Simulator Training for Novice Teen Drivers

The objective of this study was to determine if driving simulator training lowers motor vehicle crash (MVC) rates for novice teen drivers. We enrolled 215 high school students, and randomly assigned 89 to the control group, and 126 to the intervention group. Twelve months after the intervention, participants completed a survey asking about crash history and driving infractions. Nearly two-thirds (n = 137, 63%) of participants completed the presimulator survey, follow-up survey, and obtained a license. Nearly one-third of the intervention group (n = 42, 33%) completed some of the 12 simulator training modules: 2-5 modules (n = 8, 19%), 6-11 modules (n = 7, 17%), and all 12 modules (n = 27, 64%). Postsimulator training involvement in a MVC (intervention = 19.0% vs control = 12.0%, P > .05) and driving infractions (intervention = 7.1% vs control = 18.0%, P > .05) did not differ significantly. Simulator training did not produce a measurable reduction in self-reported driving infractions and MVCs. Future evaluation of driving simulator training should include approaches that ensure higher completion rates.

Trichothecenes: reference materials and method validation

The frequent contamination of food and feed with trichothecene mycotoxins, the high consumption of these products, and the potential risk associated herewith, has led to an increasing public awareness and therefore to the establishment of measures to control trichothecene contamination. The analytical difficulty and the economic importance of controlling trichothecenes in food and feed support the need for certified reference materials (CRMs) and validated methods. They form invaluable tools to ensure comparability and traceability in analytical measurements and are very useful for the implementation of written standards, legislation/regulations and laboratory accreditation. The present paper provides an overview of previous work, current strategies and prospectives for the production of CRMs and validation of analytical methods in the field of trichothecene analysis. Additional information is given on methodological demands, normative frameworks and commonly accepted procedures.