Nancy, the issue was not why the US has a higher infant mortality rate than
other industrialized countries. The point I was making was that a lot of the
decrease in infant mortality had more to do with improvements in social
conditions than in improvements in medical treatments. For example, we have
all learned in medical school that the decrease in diptheria started long
before immunization was available. Also the decrease in tuberculosis
occurred before anti tuberculous medication was available (it's now up
again).

I did not follow the suctioning thread closely, but I did not say and I
don't think anyone on the list ever said that suctioning should *never* be
done. I personally only mentioned, in response to Gail Hertz' information
about suctioning for meconium that there are studies which show that deep
tracheal suctioning, even before the baby took a first breath, has not been
shown to prevent meconium aspiration syndrome. I also mentioned that when I
was in the delivery room as a pediatrician, I did it nevertheless.

There has been a study that deep suctioning interferes with breastfeeding.

A-M Widstrom, Ransjo-Arvidson B, Christensson A-S, et al. Gastric Suction in
Healthy Newborn Infants. Acta Paediatr Scand 1987;76:566-72

There is another from Sweden which supports it, but I cannot find it just
now.

Jack Newman, MD, FRCPC