ORIGINAL RESEARCH article
Front. Pediatr.
Sec. Neonatology
Volume 13 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fped.2025.1606910
This article is part of the Research TopicSudden Cardiac Death: Mechanisms, Risk, and PreventionView all articles
Global, regional, and national burden of sudden infant death syndrome, 1990-2021: A comprehensive analysis of GBD 2021 data with insights into the impact during the COVID-19 pandemic
Provisionally accepted
- 1Henan Provincial People's Hospital, Zhengzhou, Henan Province, China
- 2Air Force General Hospital PLA, Beijing, Beijing Municipality, China
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Background: Sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) remains a leading cause of infant mortality globally. Although the global burden has generally declined over recent decades, the COVID-19 pandemic may have influenced these trends. This study investigates whether the global SIDS burden has changed, particularly during the COVID-19 pandemic.Methods: Data from the Global Burden of Disease (GBD) 2021 study were analyzed to estimate SIDS mortality and disability-adjusted life years (DALYs) globally, regionally, and nationally.Rates were stratified by sex, age group, socio-demographic index (SDI), and health system level.Projections were made using the Bayesian Age-Period-Cohort model and the the autoregressive integrated moving average (ARIMA) model.In 2021, global SIDS deaths totaled 30,608, with a mortality rate of 24.16 per 100,000 infants (95% UI, 14.06-32.44). Global DALYs were 2,746,174, at a rate of 2,167.56 per 100,000 infants (95% UI, 1,261.44-2,909.59). Mortality and DALYs rates decreased by 59% from 1990 to 2021, with marked regional differences. Regions with Low SDI and Minimal health systems, particularly Sub-Saharan Africa, had the highest burden, while higher SDI and advanced health system regions reported significant declines. Male infants aged 1-5 months showed higher rates than females. Despite a global decline during the pandemic, temporary increases occurred in countries including China, the Russian Federation, and Monaco. Projections suggest continued declines, predicting a mortality rate of 16.86 per 100,000 infants and DALYs rate of 1,400.41 per 100,000 infants by 2035.The global SIDS burden has consistently declined since 1990, including during COVID-19, yet significant regional disparities remain. Enhanced healthcare interventions and targeted public health initiatives are crucial, particularly in regions with Low SDI and Minimal 2 health system resources.
Keywords: sudden infant death syndrome, Global burden of disease, Disability-adjusted life years, Mortality, COVID-19, socio-demographic index
Received: 28 Apr 2025; Accepted: 10 Jun 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 Sun, Peng, Chen, Qin, Ren and Cheng. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence: Yan-wei Cheng, Henan Provincial People's Hospital, Zhengzhou, 450000, Henan Province, China
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