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What is SUDC: SUDC is the sudden and unexpected death of a child over the age of twelve months, which remains unexplained after a thorough case investigation, is conducted. This must include: examination of the death scene, performance of a complete autopsy, and a review of the child and family's medical history. SUDC is a diagnosis of exclusion - given when all known and possible causes of death have been ruled out. To learn more about SUDC please visit www.sudc.org On February 10, 2005- a little boy named James Hudson died- 17 months old, healthy and well cared for- the cause of death remains unexplained. The death of James has changed the lives of his family forever. His parents were driven to action.
James’ parents, Cordele and Mike, have worked very hard to develop a program in Canada complimenting the SUDC Program in the USA. Together, with their family and friends they have not tired in their efforts to raise funds to educate Canadians in this rare condition. Education and peer support remain the objective through the Blowing Kisses SUDC Program.
This program was developed to provide a centralized resource for information, support and advocacy in Canada and to assure one consistent message across the country. Cabot Trail Relay - Team Blowing Kisses While trying to cope with immeasurable grief, James’s family and friend needed to find a suitable way to pay tribute to his life. James was energetic little boy and loved life. He enjoyed being outside in the fresh Maritime air, loved going for walks with his family, and playing in the garden or on a beach. In his short life, James went on a couple memorable trips to Cape Breton, and because of that, running the Cabot Trail Relay is the perfect tribute. Sadly, no cause has been found for James’ death, because of this we also use the relay each year to raise funds and awareness for the Canadian Foundation for the Study of Infant Deaths (CFSID). All money raised is donated to the CFSID in hopes to solve the mystery of SIDS and SUDC as well as to educate parents, care givers and medical professional on risk reduction steps until a cause and cure can be found. Please donate to the CFSID, all victims of SIDS and SUDC are innocent children and we would like to put an end to this horrible syndrome. Donations can be made to the CFSID on behalf of James Hudson at 60 James Street, Suite 403, St. Catharines, ON L2R 7E7, or you can email babyjameschristianhudson@hotmail.com to get more information. 2007 Blowing Kisses SUDC Program Highlights SUDC Presentation May 31, 2007 St. Andrews by the Sea is a lovely seaside village nestled in the hills of New Brunswick and the area was host of the Chief Coroners and Medical Examiners Conference this year. Mary MacCormick representing the CFSID attended the conference. Through our Blowing Kisses SUDC Program, CFSID was able to bring a special guest, Dr. Henry Krous to provide education to our provincial Chief Coroners and Medical Examiners in regards to Sudden Unexplained Death in Childhood (SUDC) and to the expansion of the CFSID Mandate.
Dr. Krous is the Director of Pathology at the Rady Children’s Hospital-San Diego, Professor of Pathology at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine, and Director of the San Diego SIDS/SUDC Research Project. He has served as a member of the Executive Committee of the SIDS Global Strategy Task Force and Vice Chair of the SIDS Advisory Council to the California Department of Health Services. Dr. Krous is a member of the Editorial Boards of Pediatric and Developmental Pathology, Forensic Science, Medicine and Pathology and Illinois Child Welfare and has reviewed manuscripts for numerous other journals. Dr. Krous has authored greater than 300 research publications, abstracts, and chapters, and has edited 3 books, including Sudden Infant Death Syndrome: Problems, Progress & Possibilities. He has been invited to give numerous national and international lectures about Sudden Infant Death Syndrome and other topics in forensic pediatric pathology. Dr. Krous is a recipient of the Senator Daniel E. Boatwright Award for “extraordinary public service on behalf of Californians touched by SIDS.” CFSID is very proud to be one of the first countries to partner with the SUDC Program in New Jersey and to refer our Canadian Families to Dr. Krous’ San Diego SUDC Research Project. SUDC is defined as “the sudden death of a child older than one year of age which remains unexplained after a thorough case investigation, including review of the clinical history and circumstances of death, and performance of a complete autopsy with appropriate ancillary testing.” (Krous HF et al, Pediatr Dev Pathol. 2005;8(3):307-19)
SUDC is a diagnosis of exclusion and is made when all known and possible causes of death have been ruled out. SUDC is very rare and very little research is being conducted worldwide. Last year, CFSID worked with 11 families who experienced the death of their child over the age of one year. Dr. Krous explained that cases have been accessioned into the SUDC Research Project internationally. Cordele and Mike Hudson, a Canadian family whose son, James die at age 17 months, have enrolled in this project and through their fundraising efforts, CFSID was able to bring Dr. Krous to Canada and begin the educational component of our Blowing Kisses SUDC Program. Dr. Krous provided a presentation on the latest findings in research of SUDC which were very promising and exciting. In 2005, the SUDC Research Project published its first article summarizing the findings of the first 50 cases. Subsequent publications have detailed research findings useful for differential diagnosis. The Project has an article currently in press which report a small number of SUDC cases in which anomalies in the hippocampus (, a deep brain structure responsible for many complex activities including memory, emotions and navigation among other things), have been identified, providing preliminary evidence that this neuropathology may play a role in the causation of a subset of SUDC cases. For more information on the SUDC Research Project, please visit http://sudc.org/page.asp?id=11. Principal Investigator Dr. Henry Krous (hkrous@rchsd.org) and Project Manager Amy Chadwick (achadwick@rchsd.org) can be reached via email or by phone at 858/966-5944 Cabot Trail Relay Race 3rd Annual Golf Tournament SUDC Research |
