Britain: Incidence reduced by two thirds in five years

The incidence of the sudden infant death syndrome in England and Wales has fallen by 66% in five years, according to figures from the Office of Population Censuses and Surveys. The figures, published last month, show that the number of cases of cot death, as the syndrome is commonly called, fell from 545 in 1992 to 442 in 1993; in 1989 there were 1337 cot deaths.

These latest statistics, which are for babies under 1 year, follow the government's “back to sleep” campaign encouraging parents to place their babies on their backs to sleep. In addition to this campaign, which has …