1-year-old toddler dies while sleeping on stomach; medical experts caution parents
In his report on Sunday's 24 Oras Weekend, Dano Tingcungco talked with Jennifer (not her real name) about the tragedy that took her one and a half year old child.
Jennifer said it was an uneventful evening last June 21 at their home. After dinner of rice and soup at 8 p.m., the child had some milk before falling to sleep an hour later.
At around 12:40 a.m., Jennifer said she woke up and decided to check on her child who was lying on his stomach. She noticed the toddler was listless and not moving. When she turned on the lights, the child's mouth had turned to a 'violet' color.
The shocked mother rushed her child to the hospital where it was discovered there was a large amount of liquid and food in his lungs.
Aspiration pneumonia was ruled as the cause of death.
In babies, aspiration pneumonia occurs when foreign substances like food, liquid, or vomit are inhaled into the lungs.
Jennifer said she was told by the medical staff that her child suffocated because he was lying prone while he slept.
'Ang instance daw po ng tao kapag hindi makahinga ay masusuka. Sa case po ng anak ko dahil nakadapa po siya hindi niya po mailabas yung suka kaya po dumerecho sa baga niya and then nalunod daw po siya sa sarili niyang suka. Nakadapa po siya, naka close ang bibig,' Jennifer said.
(I was told in that instance when a person could not breathe they would throw up. In my child's case he was lying on his stomach so he could not expel his vomit which then ended up in his lungs. He drowned in his own vomit. He was lying prone and his mouth was closed.)
Jennifer cautioned other parents to be careful with their children who have the practice of sleeping in the lying down position.
Risks
Experts said that sleeping on one's stomach can be unsafe, particularly to small children.
'Some of the research shows that sleeping on the stomach can block the airway because it increases what we call rebreathing that means they breathe their own exhaled air. Bumababa (It decreases) oxygen sa katawan (in their bodies) and level of CO2 rises and that is not good,' said pediatrician Dr. Benjamin Co.
'If you have a baby in chest position, 'di nila kayang bumaligtad (they are unable) to stay on the back position. As the child gets older, it doesn't happen anymore,' Co added.
The American Academy of Pediatrics launched the 'Back to Sleep' campaign to promote safe sleep practices for infants, specifically recommending that healthy babies sleep on their backs to reduce the risk of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS).
It is also recommended for parents or guardians to closely check if their small children have a problem with breathing, especially since they are unable to share what they are feeling. —RF, GMA Integrated News
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