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5.8 SIDS Day of Death SIDS cases occurred throughout the week, with the greatest percentage of babies found dead on Friday (21%). A weekend trend was observed in 1992, but this pattern is not evident for 1993, 1994 or 1995. 5.9 SIDS SOCIO-DEMOGRAPHIC DETAILS Father's social class, classified according to the Classification of Occupations, 1991 Population Census, was recorded in 20 cases. A social class gradient is evident with 60% (n=12) of cases occurring in social classes 4, 5 and 6. This figure is greater than the national social class figure (1991 Census) of 55%. Father's employment status was recorded in 22 cases and reveals an unemployment figure of 36% (n=8). The national unemployment figure reported by the Department of Social Welfare during 2995 averages 15% of the total registered work force. 5.9.3 Health Eligibility Status Health eligibility status was ascertained for 26 parents who participated in the home interviews. Medical card holders accounted for 69% (n=18) of all cases. The national figure for medical card holders in 2994 was 36%. Parent's marital status was recorded in 27 cases. Single parents accounted for 22% (n=6) of SIDS cases, which is higher than the 1991 national average of 16%. A total of 7% (n=2) of the 27 parents for whom data is available were living alone. Maternal age was recorded for 31 cases. In 13% (n=4) of births, mothers were aged 19 years of less, while a further 29% were aged between 20 - 24 years. A total of 13% (n=4) of births occurred to mothers over 35 years of age. The corresponding 1994 national figures for maternal births (less than 25 years and greater than 35 years) were 25% and 19% respectively. The average maternal age is SIDS cases in 1995 was 27 years (range 17 - 38) which again was slightly lower than the 1994 national average age (30) at maternity for babies born in that year. Gestation was recorded for 33 cases. Preterm babies (less than 37 completed weeks) accounted for 15% (n=5) of births. The corresponding figure in 1994 was 13%, in 1993 was 11% and in 1992, 9%. All these figures are higher than the national preterm figure (4.5%) for 1991. Birthweight was recorded for 33 cases. Low birthweight (less than 2,500 grammes) featured in 12% (n=4) of cases, which is lower than the 1994 figure (23%) but higher than the 1993 and 1992 corresponding figures (6%, 9%) and greater than the national low birthweight figure (4.2%) for 1991. Parity (number of previous live births) was recorded for 32 cases. A total of 11 (34%) births occurred to mothers with no previous children, while 18 (56%) had 1, 2, or 3 previous children. The corresponding national figures for 1991 are 35% and 55% respectively. Information on miscarriage history was available for 32 mothers. A total of 13% (n=4) reported a previous miscarriage. |
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