Abstract
A current hypothesis linking SID to a central nervous system dysfunction due to absence of the EAN prompted the present study.
Histological examinations of the brainstem were carried out on 13 term and 3 preterm infants who had suddenly died at home between the third and 29.week of life.The control group consisted of two term infants,age 5 and 9 months who had died due to self-strangulation, two term newborns,age 3 and 18 days,dying from respiratory distress and peritonitis,respectively and in addition of 8 fetuses at 17 to 33 weeks gestational age.
Each brainstem was sectioned serially from the caudal pons to the end of the medulla at 6 -8 um intervals. Every fourth section was stained with hematoxylin and eosin and in each case 140-160 sections were analyzed. Neurons were counted separately in two areas in which the central chemoreceptors may exist,one located rostrally of the hypoglossus root(field 1),the other medially to the rostral part of the hypoglossus root (field 2).
Results were as follows:1)all SID-infants demonstrated the EAN. 2) number of neurons per area decreased with infants growth: by 20 weeks we found 1.390×103/mm2, by birth 73×103/mm2, in SID-infants and in controls 50-30× 103/mm2. 3) cell distribution was irregular, especially in field 2.
(Supported by SWISS NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION grant 3.997.82 )
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Pugatsch, S., Molz, G. Sudden infant death (SID): Histological study of the external arcuate nucleus (EAN) of the brainstem. Pediatr Res 18, 805 (1984). https://doi.org/10.1203/00006450-198408000-00083
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1203/00006450-198408000-00083