The interest of the neurological tissue preservation for the investigation of sudden infant death syndrome.

Sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) is the main cause of post-natal infant mortality in developed countries with an incidence rate ranging from 1.5 to 2:1000 live births. Brainstem dysfunction of circuits which control respiration and cardiovascular stability may be involved in SIDS. Combined neuropathological and biochemical studies could elucidate some of these aspects. The relationships of these deaths to medico-legal problems could explain the scarce availability of these tissues. The need for a central SIDS tissue bank is emphasized and a protocol for the collection of CNS tissue is proposed. A detailed neuropathological study using this protocol allowed us to recognize pathological features in the CNS of 9 SIDS cases. Some features were related to the maturation of CNS, and others to possible infections. Gliosis was a common finding in most cases. The present state of SIDS investigation and results are also discussed.