What defines Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) after thorough investigation?

Death that remains unexplained after a thorough investigation.

Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) is specifically defined as the sudden, unexplained death of an infant younger than one year old that remains unexplained even after standard procedures have been completed. These standard procedures are exhaustive, typically involving a complete autopsy, a detailed review of the infant’s clinical history, and a careful examination of the location where the death occurred. Because SIDS is fundamentally a diagnosis of exclusion, it is only assigned when all other potential causes for the passing, such as recognizable trauma, infection, or a congenital defect discovered during the autopsy, have been definitively ruled out. If a specific cause is found, the death is attributed to that specific cause, not SIDS.