Cot deaths ‘more likely at weekends’

COT deaths are more likely to occur at weekends, a study confirmed yesterday.

Figures released in April revealed that Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) occurs in 0.06% of Irish births, down from 0.25% in the 1980s.

Researchers identified the weekend trend after analysing 12,762 sudden infant deaths from around Britain.

They found cases of SIDS peaked on Saturdays and Sundays.

Just under a third 32% of weekly deaths occurred at the weekend significantly more than the expected figure of 28.6%.

The reason for the phenomenon is unclear, but it has been suggested parents may pay less attention to their babies at weekends.

A team from the University of Aberdeen reported the findings in the journal Archives of Disease in Childhood.