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Interstitial haemosiderin in the lungs of sudden infant death syndrome: A histological hallmark of ‘near‐miss’ episodes?
Author(s) -
Stewart Susan,
Fawcett John,
Jacobson W.
Publication year - 1985
Publication title -
the journal of pathology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.964
H-Index - 184
eISSN - 1096-9896
pISSN - 0022-3417
DOI - 10.1002/path.1711450105
Subject(s) - medicine , pathology , pathological , sudden infant death syndrome , autopsy , sudden death , abnormality , lung , cause of death , petechial rash , pediatrics , surgery , disease , psychiatry
Abstract The occurrence of multiple intrathoracic petechial haemorrhages in sudden infant death syndrome is well‐documented and undisputed. We describe a study of 24 consecutive sudden infant deaths in which Perls' method for staining of iron in lung sections has been employed in addition to standard post‐mortem procedures. Haemosiderin‐containing macrophages have been demonstrated in 13 infants in subpleural and interstitial lung tissue in the absence of local fresh interstitial haemorrhage; ten of these infants had no evidence of respiratory tract inflammation and died mainly between one and three months of age. Eleven babies without haemosiderin showed evidence of inflammatory lesions and were predominantly four months or older at death. The demonstration of previous haemorrhagic foci in babies showing no other pathological abnormality may represent a histological hallmark of previous ‘near‐miss’ episodes of hypoxaemia from whatever cause.