A summary of an article from Arch Dis Child 1995;73:502-504 ."Some infants
may not respond normally by struggling when their airway is occluded while
being held or breastfed, according to Australian researchers from the
paediatrics department at the University of Adelaide. Byard and Burnell
reported two four-week-old infants who suffered apparent life threatening
events being cradled. They were able to reproduce the events during which
the infants did not struggle; in each case the infant's face was being
inadvertently pushed against large breasts covered by thick clothing.
Changing the way the infants were held terminated events. The reseachers
also reported a third case where an eight-week-old infant suffered a
cardiorespiratory arrest while being breastfed. Circumstantial evidence
implicated failure to respond to possible airway occlusion, they said."This
summary was included in the Medical J of Australia Carolyn Lawlor-Smith
LC/Dr South Australia