Office of National Statistics research looking at sudden infant deathsbetween 1995 to 2003 has found a huge overlap in the characteristics ofbabies whose deaths are certified as "sudden infant deaths" and thoselabelled "unascertained".
Statistics for 2004 showing an increase in the number of sudden infantdeaths and a drop in the number of unascertained deaths are likely tohave been caused by new approaches to recording deaths.
A report into sudden infant death by a working group chaired by HelenaKennedy QC has called for fuller investigations of infant deaths toavoid "unascertained" verdicts. A spokeswoman for Foundation for theStudy of Infant Deaths said it was time these recommendations werefollowed up because unascertained verdicts cast suspicion on parents.
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