An inquest into the death of an eight-week-old baby was told by an assistant state pathologist that bed-sharing and, more importantly, sharing a couch with parents may be a risk factor in the case of babies dying from the undetermined cause known as Sudden Infant Death Syndrome.
Dr Margaret Bolster made her remarks yesterday during an inquest into the death of a baby boy in Tralee, Co Kerry, in December 2003.
Baby Tommy O'Brien, who was born on October 15th, 2003, was a well-nourished baby with no medical or virus problem, and no external marks, Dr Bolster detailed.
However, he was found dead on a couch on the morning of December 13th, 2003. An extensive range of tests failed to reveal the cause of his death at his home at Killeen Heights, Killeen, Oakpark, Tralee.
The jury at the inquest returned the cause of death as undetermined. Coroner Ms Helen Lucey said this was compatible with Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS).
The baby's mother, Ms Deirdre Dennehy, said in her deposition she had left her son at home in the charge of his father, Mr Tom O'Brien, and a brother in-law on the evening of December 12th, 2003 to go for a meal in Killorglin with workplace colleagues.
When she returned at around 2.30 a.m. baby Tommy was asleep in his pram. At around 6.45 a.m the child was on the couch with his sleeping father. She lifted him up and he was dead, she went for medical attention.
Mr Tom O'Brien said after his wife had returned home and gone to bed, he gave the baby a bottle. This was at around 3.30 a.m. After feeding him, he and the baby fell asleep together on the couch. The next thing he remembered was waking up and his wife Deirdre screaming.
In her evidence of the post mortem, Dr Margaret Bolster said a full autopsy, toxicology report and other extensive examinations had failed to reveal the cause of his death. "The results of many studies suggest bed sharing and, more importantly, couch sharing, may be a risk factor in Sudden Infant Death Syndrome," Dr Bolster said.
Ms Lucey said SIDS was a very traumatic type of death for parents because there was no cause.
The medical examinations and the inquests parents had to go through helped with research and contributed to finding a cause.
It was not something that Ms Dennehy should worry about recurring, she said.
Garda Insp Martin McCarthy sympathised with the family and said coroners' courts frequently had to deal with SIDS.