SynthesisBMJ open2021
Association between auditory system pathology and sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS): a systematic review.
Synthesis in BMJ open, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 2 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
2 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.
- Prenatal and postnatal factors associated with sudden infant death syndrome: an umbrella review of meta-analyses.World journal of pediatrics : WJP · 2024Pooled it
- Post-mortem Cardiac MRI in Sudden Cardiac Death: The Interesting Intertwining of Radiology and Histology to Diagnose Arrhythmic Death or Myocardial Infarction.Current medical imaging · 2025Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
3 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
objectiveA theory has emerged, suggesting that abnormalities in the auditory system may be associated with sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS). However, current clinical evidence has never been systematically reviewed.
designA systematic review was conducted according to the guideline of Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses. DATA SOURCES: PubMed, Embase and Web of Science were systematically searched through 7 September 2020. ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA FOR SELECTING STUDIES: Only human studies with a reference group were included. Studies were eligible for inclusion if they examined infants exposed to otoacoustic emissions (OAEs), auditory brainstem response (ABR) or had autopsies with brainstem histology of the auditory system. SIDS was the primary outcome, while the secondary outcome was near-miss sudden infant death syndrome episodes. DATA EXTRACTION AND SYNTHESIS: Two independent reviewers extracted data and assessed risk of bias, and the quality of evidence. Due to high heterogeneity, a narrative synthesis was conducted. Risk of bias and quality of evidence was assessed using the Newcastle-Ottawa Scale and Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development and Evaluation.
resultsTwelve case-control studies were included. Seven studies on OAEs or ABR had a high degree of inconsistency. Contrarily, four out of five studies reporting on brainstem histology found that auditory brainstem abnormalities were more prevalent in SIDS cases than in controls. However, the quality of evidence across all studies was very low.
conclusionThis systematic review found no clear association between auditory system pathology and SIDS. The higher prevalence of histological abnormalities in the auditory system of SIDS may indicate an association. However, further studies of higher quality and larger study populations are needed to determine whether these findings are valid. PROSPERO REGISTRATION NUMBER: CRD42020208045.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.