Placental abnormalities in victims of the sudden infant death syndrome.

Placentas from 79 victims of the sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) were compared with placentas from 30,640 controls who survived in a search for evidences of infections or other disorders that might have damaged the SIDS victims before birth. Placentas from the SIDS victims had an increased frequency of acute funisitis, acute chorioamnionitis, lymphocytic infiltration of the decidua and macrophages in the fetal membranes. The acute funisitis and chorioamnionitis were associated with preterm deliveries and were probably related to amniotic fluid bacterial infections which are a common cause of premature delivery.