New Study - Shaken Baby Syndrome & Unplanned Pregnancies

In a recent study Dr. Randell Alexander, chief of the Division of Child Protection and Forensic Pediatrics at the University of Florida College of Medicine in Jacksonville said the baby’s parents are most likely the predators and the mother is just as likely to shake their baby as the father is. Statically the majority of women who commit the violent act of shaking their baby and in many cases causing the infants death will not go to prison for their actions. If the father commit’s the same act of violence there is a ninety-nine percent chance he will be convicted and serve prison time.

Shaken Baby Syndrome

Shaken baby syndrome is the “leading cause of death in abusive head trauma cases, with an estimated 1,200 to 1,400 children injured or killed by shaking each year in the United States,” according to the National Center on Shaken Baby Syndrome. Injuries sustained include brain hemorrhages, skull factures and death.

Study

My study has small numbers, but of the three women who did confess, two of their three victims were covered with marks," Esernio-Jenssen said. "It's harder to deny if you're looking at a kid with marks all over them.”

Unplanned Pregnancies

Researchers do not have specific numbers of how many infants who suffered or loss their life to shaken baby syndrome were the result of an unplanned pregnancy. However, based on their data it is indicated that the parents of babies who were not planned have a higher risk of harming their baby.

Source: The study is published in the March 7 online issue of the journal Pediatrics